Residents heard a bang

Major operation in Vienna: building suddenly collapses

The collapse of a building under renovation triggered a large-scale operation by Vienna's emergency services.(Bild: Stadt Wien Feuerwehr)

Residents suddenly heard a loud bang on Thursday evening: a building under renovation in Vienna-Döbling collapsed downhill along with its steel supports. A large-scale operation by the fire department, police and rescue services ensued - including height rescuers, drones and rescue dogs. 

At around 9.30 pm, residents on Bellevuestraße suddenly heard a loud noise and called the emergency services. A vacant building on a neighboring property that was being renovated had collapsed downhill towards the street, along with the steel support structure erected to secure the outer walls.

Fire department searched for trapped people
The emergency services from the Vienna Fire Brigade were alerted to investigate the construction site and fortunately found no areas in acute danger of falling. At the same time, firefighters investigated the cone of debris, searched for any trapped persons and checked the neighboring buildings.

The collapse of a building under renovation triggered a major operation by Vienna's emergency services.(Bild: Stadt Wien Feuerwehr)

Numerous rescue teams in action
Due to the unclear situation, the height rescuers, the drone team and two special services of the Vienna State Fire Brigade Association, the fire department rescue dog squadron and the sound detection team of the disaster relief service were also alerted. In the meantime, the police were able to reach representatives of the construction company responsible, who were no longer on site at the time of the collapse.

The two fire department rescue dogs deployed searched the cone of debris extensively - there were no indications of buried persons. Vienna Professional Rescue was on site with several teams, including the special task force. No injuries were reported.