LAKE CITY, Fla. — Neighbors are raising questions about what caused the collapse of a structure at the Florida Gateway Fairgrounds Wednesday afternoon.
The Columbia County Sheriff’s Office says their units responded to the fairgrounds between 4:05 p.m. and 4:15 p.m.
On Facebook, CCSO said, “Due to a structural collapse at the rodeo arena, there is currently a large presence of first responders. At this time, all personnel are accounted for and safe.”
In a statement, Florida Gateway Fairgrounds posted the following:
There is a heavy first responder presence at the Florida Gateway Fairgrounds Rodeo Arena. There was a structural collapse at the new rodeo arena facility, which is currently under construction. We are extremely grateful that there are no reported injuries. At this time, the cause of the collapse will be investigated. No further information is available at this time. We will release more information as it becomes available.
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Heather Dube, who lives near the structure, says she can see it from her son’s bedroom window.
Prior to the collapse, she said it looked like a house; the framing was put together, and she could clearly see where the seats of the arena would be placed. Now, neighbors describe the structure as looking more like a rollercoaster than an arena.
“It looks like a tornado came through and hit it,” Dube said. “Everything just collapsed [into] a pile of rubble.”
Plumb Level Construction, the construction company behind the project, posted a first look at the start of the project back in April. Their latest update came on July 16, when they posted, “Big things are happening at the new rodeo arena!”
Although the cause of the collapse is still being investigated, Dube is wondering who’s to blame.
“I’ve seen a lot of people already saying the same thing that they feel like people are trying to cut corners,” Dube said. “Maybe it just wasn’t up to the standards that it should have been for how hot it gets here.”
Action News Jax reached out to Plumb Level Construction for more information, but has not yet received a response. We’ll continue to keep you up to date online and on air as we learn more about what caused the collapse.
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