Deadly balcony collapse forces residents from Sea Isle City condo tower
SEA ISLE CITY - A construction worker died and residents were forced from their homes due to a balcony collapse at a Boardwalk condominium complex here.
The accident occurred around 2:20 p.m. Friday when an eighth-floor balcony fell at the Spinnaker complex at 3500-3700 Boardwalk, according to an account from Sea Isle City police.
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The accident killed Jose Pereira, 43, of Philadelphia, a construction worker who was pinned under a concrete slab that fell onto a seventh-floor balcony, police said.
The collapse occurred on the north side of the Spinnaker's South Tower.
Spinnaker complex evacuated
First responders from Sea Isle City attempted to reach Pereira, "but observed significant cracks in the surrounding area and a slope to the balcony, and it was determined that the side of the building was unsafe," said the police account.
"At that point, requests were made for additional rescue personnel and equipment, and the building was evacuated of all residents," it said.
"All of the decks on the exterior of the Spinnaker’s South Tower, near where the incident occurred, are currently being stabilized," the police statement said Saturday.
"Once the building is considered safe, further evaluations on both Spinnaker buildings will be conducted by private engineers," it said.
The statement did not say how many residents were forced from their homes, or where they had found shelter.
A representative of the Spinnaker's management could not be reached for immediate comment.
Complex recovery effort
Emergency personnel recovered Pereira's body after temporarily stabilizing the seventh-floor balcony and then cutting through an exterior wall that consisted of about one foot of reinforced concrete.
The concrete slab of the fallen balcony, which was about 30 feet long, was raised by heavy-lift airbags to reach Pereira, who was pronounced dead at the scene at 9:52 p.m.
Pereira was employed by Ferguson Contracting Inc. of Yardley, Pennsylvania.
The contractor was working on the building’s exterior, police said.
Construction on the South Tower began in 1972, according to a website for the complex.
Balcony collapse under investigation
Regional Urban Search and Rescue Teams from Cape May and Camden counties responded to the incident, along with fire departments from Marmora, Ocean City, Stone Harbor, Strathmere, and Wildwood.
The incident is under investigation by Sea Isle City Police, with assistance from the Cape May County Prosecutor’s Office and the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
OSHA has six months to complete its investigation and issue a report, an agency spokesperson said Saturday.
Jim Walsh is a senior reporter with the Courier-Post, Burlington County Times and The Daily Journal.
This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Sea Isle City balcony collapse kills man, forces Spinnaker evacuation
