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Crews fear more bodies under rubble of Houston mall
January 30, 1997
Web posted at: 5:40 p.m. EDT
HOUSTON (CNN) -- Rescue crews rummaged through the wreckage of a Houston mall Thursday, looking for anyone who could be trapped beneath debris. Authorities feared more bodies may lie underneath the huge chunks of concrete.
At least three people were killed and several others injured when a wall collapsed at the Northline Mall as employees and shoppers prepared for the beginning of the business day.
Two bodies were recovered about 10 hours after the collapse. A third body was spotted in the debris Thursday evening.
"We're pretty certain there may be other people under the debris," Fire Chief Eddie Corral said at a news conference. "We won't really know until we get in there and pull it off. Some of it is rather large and heavy."
Police tracking dogs and heavy equipment were brought in to help assist in the search. The wall collapsed at about 9 a.m. in a vacant area that was undergoing renovations. But other parts of the mall were open, and the debris fell on an area accessible to the public.
The section of the wall that collapsed was about 18 feet high
and 150 feet long. It was not immediately clear what caused
the collapse, authorities said. 
(1.4MB/25 sec. QuickTime movie)
Witnesses describe scene
The identities of those killed had not been released. Officials said at least six people were injured, including one critically. Another was treated for a serious leg injury; the others sustained minor injuries.
Rhonda Russell was taking a leisurely stroll through the mall when the wall crashed down. "It sounded like an explosion and the whole wall tumbled down. You couldn't see nothing but smoke."
"It made a hell of a racket," said Tom Forrester, 86, who was taking his daily walk through the mall. "I heard a noise. Bam!"
The area where the wall collapsed was being demolished to house a new Magic Johnson Theater complex. In a written statement to CNN, a Johnson spokesman expressed condolences to the injured and the families of the victims.
"Although we have not begun construction of our theater and were not involved in Northline Mall's current demolition of the existing building, Magic Johnson Theaters ... joins their sorrow on this sad day," the statement said.
Related story:
- Wall collapses in Houston mall; at least 2 dead - January 30, 1996
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