MAHANOY CITY, Pa. — A building along East Centre Street in Mahanoy City came tumbling down Wednesday afternoon. locals say the building was abandoned and had been falling to pieces for years.
Borough officials knew they had to act fast.
"This was a big collapse. Normally, if you see a property collapse, it kind of collapses in on itself; it’s a smaller situation. It’s still dangerous, but then we would have more time to address it. This was an emergency," said Mahanoy City Borough Manager Sandra Fisk.
A local contractor began sifting through the rubble Thursday morning, tearing apart what's left and clearing it out.
Fisk says the building is privately owned, and the owner was cited for violations several times. She says local code enforcement followed every rule, but officials know blight is a big problem in the borough.
"We have some abandoned properties, and they’re in need of some help. We want the community to know that we care. We want them to know that we are on it."
Mahanoy City officials say they’re working hard to make sure that collapses like this one are the exception and not the norm. The borough is using money from real estate taxes to address those properties. Officials applied for a state grant to make improvements on East Centre.
"That specific block where that property fell, we are looking to clean up that block and redevelop that block."
Fisk hopes some facelifts and construction can help renew the sense of pride in the community.
"We get it. This was very upsetting. We’re continuing to try to make sure that this doesn’t happen again," Fisk said. "Don’t let some of the buildings that aren’t necessarily in the best repair deter you from coming to Manahoy City because it’s a really cool place to be."
Fisk is asking residents to take care of their properties, so they never end up like this.