A video captured the collapse of a shoring retention wall at the base of a high-rise construction site on Wednesday afternoon in Coquitlam, Canada.
The Amacon condo site is located at 500 Foster Avenue near North Road, according to The Daily Hive.
In the video, which is just under a minute long, you can see the wall begin to slowly crack and eventually a large chunk of the structure gives way to soil and gravel. The video itself appears to be taken by a construction worker on the high-rise site, who can be heard making exclamations about the incident throughout the video. Voices can be heard instructing the construction workers and onlookers to clear and evacuate the area.
Vice President of Amacon Stepan Vdovine claimed that the collapse was caused by a shoring failure.
“A section of the shoring retention wall, located on the north side of the site (and adjacent to Foster Avenue) failed, resulting in soil collapsing into the excavated site and a cavity in the soil in the area adjacent to the property,” Vdovine told The Daily Hive in a statement. (RELATED: REPORT: Gas Line Rupture In Wappingers Falls Triggers Massive Fire And Building Collapse, Injuring 15 People)
“All work on site had attained the required permits, and [was] thoroughly vetted and monitored by the geotechnical and engineering consultants,” he added, according to the outlet.
The cause of the incident is still under investigation, and Vdovine added that WorkSafe BC, which ensures employee safety in various environments, had expressed no safety concerns in previous inspections, the outlet noted.
OHS Canada informed the public that Foster Avenue between North Road and Whiting Way would be closed, and “construction noise would continue throughout the night.”