No injuries reported; Firefighters searching for anyone possibly trapped in garage

Sky4 aerials show partial garage collapse at Ascension St. Vincent's Riverside Hospital. (WJXT)

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – parking garage at Ascension St. Vincent’s Riverside on King Street partially collapsed Tuesday afternoon, damaging multiple cars and leaving others precariously tilted on the edge of the collapse, according to News 6 partner WJXT.

Firefighters were conducting search and rescue efforts in the garage to see if anyone was trapped in the structure. No injuries have been reported.

“Part of the garage collapsed. I know we have rescue units out there that are searching to make sure nobody was in that building when it collapsed. What we know right now, we don’t believe anybody was there, but they’re still searching,” Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan told News4JAX.

Sky4 aerials show partial garage collapse at Ascension St. Vincent's Riverside Hospital. (WJXT)

Multiple cars could be seen under the partial pancake collapse at 1824 King St. Sources told News4JAX that no one was in the cars under the collapsed portion of the garage.

The doctor’s building next to the garage was evacuated.

A witness told News4JAX he was checking in with the receptionist at about 12:15 p.m. when they heard a loud boom and felt the building shake. They evacuated the building about 10 minutes later, he said.

He said his car was still trapped on the first floor of the garage.

Aerials from the scene show a section of the third floor of the garage collapsed onto the second floor and at least one vehicle overturned on its side.

Another vehicle on the third floor is tilted precariously on the edge of the collapsed section.

Witness Velda Stokes told News4JAX there was a loud “Boom!” and when she came outside she saw the car on its side in the garage and “all hell broke loose.”

Witness Marcel said everyone was worried there might be people under the rubble.

“It was crazy. At first, we thought someone fell,” she said.

Another man described the scene saying he also felt the building shake and thought someone had run into the building.

“You only had one row of cars against the building and then just a drop-off where the drive lane is below. Everything dropped down,” he said.

The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said the area of King Street and St. Johns Avenue is closed off because of “an industrial accident.”

The St. Vincent’s Emergency Room entrance is closed.

News4JAX has crews at the scene and we will update as more information becomes available.

A close-up image shows the partial collapse of the garage at Ascension St. Vincent's Riverside (WJXT)

Copyright 2023 by WKMG ClickOrlando - All rights reserved.

About the Author:

Jim Piggott is the reporter to count on when it comes to city government and how it will affect the community.