A portion of the the former Emmett Valley Fruit Building collapsed Friday but authorities don't believe at this time it came crashing down because of the snow.
The city says the Emmett Fire Department was called out just after 4PM. On scene, firemen were confronted with an open building, natural gas spewing on one side and water from the sprinkler system spewing from the other. crews shut off the the utilities but not before an estimated 30,000 gallons of water had flowed into the area on the west end. The city says Emmett Public Works crews immediately went to work mitigating the flooding caused by the water as Gem County Sheriff and Emmett Police personnel secured the scene.
Authorities say no one was injured, They say the building is owned by Robert Mungo of Long Beach California. Its tenants are involved in light industrial manufacturing. In speaking with Emmett City officials by phone, Mungo related the building had been refurbished four years ago with a new roof and other improvements. City personnel at the scene noted there was not a significant amount of snow on the roof.
The Mayor says nobody will be allowed to work until a structural engineer assesses what needs to be done to make the building safe again.
