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Theater Undergoing Deconstruction Collapses in Millville, New Jersey

By Christopher J. Naum, SFPE on Jan 04, 2011 with Comments 0

Special to The News/ Drew EskridgeThe scene following the collapse at Levoy Theatre in Millville.

There was great promise in the 102-year-old Levoy Theater. Just last week there were numerous articles about the gutting of the building with its facade left in place and new steel trusses for the roof. The new Levoy was supposed to be a centerpiece for downtown Millville with a scheduled reopening in July. The Levoy is now a pile of rubble.

According to news accounts there were multiple collapses. The first collapse occurred around 3:00 PM. A dozen people working on the site escaped injury. The collapse damaged nearby gas meters causing a natural gas leak.

Click above for more aerial images from WPVI-TV.

History of the Levoy Theater

Another collapse happened about 20 minutes later, after firefighters arrived at the scene. It left a veteran firefighter with a broken leg. Here are excerpts from an article by Greg Adomaitis at NJ.com: The fire fighter, whose name has not been released, was by the front walls of the theater and neighboring tea room when the rest of the building gave out. The workers had noticed plaster along the north corner beginning to separate which left a 6-to-8 foot gap in the corners. They managed to evacuate before the entire face of the building, then most of the side walls, came crashing down 20 minutes later. The rear wall remained standing though neighboring buildings suffered damages in the collapse. The tea room next door was damaged and all the gas meters for the apartments in the Fath building, on the other side of the Levoy, were ripped off, causing a gas leak.Gas to three buildings was shut off and fumes were to be cleared before the scene of the collapse could be reopened.

This is from a Press of Atlantic City article by Christopher Ramirez from last Thursday:

The final step of demolition at Levoy Theatre in Millville signals continuing strides to reconstruct the historic theater.

Crews worked from scissor lifts Thursday, using pneumatic chisels to break loose the building’s massive interior wall, brick-by-brick. The dismantling process includes the proscenium arch around the original stage.

“This is the final piece to be removed before it is all moving forward,” said Phillip Van Embden, a member of the theater’s board of directors.

The 102-year-old theater has already been gutted, with only the original exterior walls remaining, and the building received new steel trusses for the roof and improvements to the foundation.

Van Embden said deconstruction of the wall should continue through early next week, with the bricks headed to the Palace of Depression in Vineland – a renowned Depression-era home built by George Daynore using an assortment of scrap materials. Volunteers have undertaken the task of restoring the abnormal attraction after it was torn down more than 40 years ago.

100-Year-Old Levoy Theater Collapses: MyFoxPHILLY.com

Workers noticed structural damage, evacuated building before collapse

About a dozen construction workers were inside the High Street theater when they reportedly noticed one of the walls started to separate from the rest of the structure, and they evacuated the building. The front wall and most of the two side walls crumbled and collapsed about 20 minutes later, officials said. Nobody was inside at the time of the collapse, but one firefighter, called to the scene after the wall separated, suffered a broken leg when falling debris struck him. Theater officials said the collapse would delay the project but not stop their efforts to reopen the landmark as a performing arts center. Fire Chief Kurt Hess said the wall of the theater closest to Pine Street, which is connected to Vintage Rose Tea Room, separated from the rest of the structure around 3 p.m. Monday. About 15 to 20 minutes later the building started to come down, he said. A construction official said the building housing the Tea Room might have to be torn down because of the amount of damage it sustained.

Firefighter injured when falling debris breaks his leg

The Levoy has been under renovations for several months and crews recently put a new steel roof on the building. The renovation and reopening of the theater — planned for this summer — is considered by city officials to be key in revitalizing the downtown and luring more visitors to the Glasstown Arts District. Firefighters were called to the scene after the wall separated to investigate a possible gas leak and assess the building’s stability, fire and police officials said. David Smith, a city firefighter for 25 years, responded to the initial call and entered the Tea Room to determine if there was a gas leak. When he got a high reading, he and two other firefighters left the store.