At least 25 people were hurt when a floor collapsed during a recent house party near the University of Georgia, the Athens-Clarke County Police Department reports.
Athens-Clarke County Police Lt. Shaun Barnett tells PEOPLE Magazine that “several hundred” people were attending a party at a two-story home in Athens, Georgia when the first floor of the house collapsed. This caused an array of injuries ranging from cuts and scratches to a possible broken arm. But when emergency responders arrived, none of the injured agreed to go to the hospital. Instead, they claimed they would get medical attention on their own.
Athens-Clarke County Fire and Emergency Services Department Capt. Nate Moss told the Associated Press that authorities had issued getting to the house because there were “massive amounts of vehicles blocking the street.” When they got inside, they saw that the majority of the first floor had collapsed into the crawl space because of “dozens of people who had overcrowded the space.”
“We are grateful that this unexpected event didn’t turn out any worse than it did,” Moss said. “Many times, overcrowding can result in collapses of decks and flooring, especially in older structures. The thing that helped, in this case, was the lack of elevation. These folks should consider themselves fortunate.”
Students at nearby houses heard the loud crash caused by the collapsed floor. Also, student and witness, Devin Jones, said he saw students break down the basement door to free trapped partygoers.
“I thought people were fighting,” Jones said. “But they were actually trying to break into that door to get people out from underneath the floor.”
Jones and his friends then jumped in to help the injured student.
Since the party, the local code enforcement office has condemned the property for being unsafe.
