Katowice Trade Hall Roof Collapse
On 28 January 2006, the roof of one of the buildings at Katowice International Fair (Międzynarodowe Targi Katowickie) collapsed in Chorzów / Katowice, Poland.
At 16:15 GMT (17:15 local time), the central section of the roof of the hall collapsed, possibly due to the weight of snow on the building. According to the police there were roughly 700 people in the hall at the time of the collapse. A further collapse occurred 90 minutes later during rescue operations. Polish government spokesman Krzysztof Mejer confirmed that there had been 65 dead as well as more than 170 injured, including 13 foreigners. There are confirmed deaths of ten foreign tourists – one from Belgium, one from Germany, three from Slovakia, one from the Netherlands, one from Hungary and three from the Czech Republic. The trade hall was hosting 56th National Exhibition of Carrier Pigeons, with over 120 exhibitors from all over Europe. Poland was at that time experiencing very cold weather with heavy snow. This means the rescue operation was undertaken in sub-zero temperatures, putting survivors inside the building at risk of exposure.
Read more about Katowice Trade Hall Roof Collapse: Rescue Operation, Aftermath and Investigation, Indictment and Trial, Location of MTK, Nationalities of The Victims
Famous quotes containing the words trade, hall, roof and/or collapse:
“Killers, huh? I’d trade the pair of you for a good Camp Fire Girl.”
—Daniel Taradash (b. 1913)
“I may be able to spot arrowheads on the desert but a refrigerator is a jungle in which I am easily lost. My wife, however, will unerringly point out that the cheese or the leftover roast is hiding right in front of my eyes. Hundreds of such experiences convince me that men and women often inhabit quite different visual worlds. These are differences which cannot be attributed to variations in visual acuity. Man and women simply have learned to use their eyes in very different ways.”
—Edward T. Hall (b. 1914)
“Nor does the man sitting by the hearth beneath his roof better escape his fated doom.”
—Aeschylus (525–456 B.C.)
“The Roman world is in collapse but we do not bend our neck.”
—Jerome (c. 340–420)