AT least 70 people became trapped when a floor collapsed at a wedding venue in New Hampshire.
The incident happened at The Preserve at Chocorua in Tamworth, where about 140 people were attending the celebration, according to officials.
The ceremony had just started when the floorboards buckled, creating a 20-foot by 20-foot hole.
People were plunged around eight feet into the basement, while several were trapped by the fallen beams and by farm equipment that had been stored on the lower floor.
Before first responders arrived, other guests and staff helped some of the victims who had fallen climb out of the basement.
Ladders were dropped down to help get them out, and those with minor injuries were bandaged up at the scene.
A first responder who arrived at the venue shortly after 911 calls came in described half the floor of the building where the wedding ceremony was set to take place as having fallen into the basement over scanner traffic listened to on Broadcastify.
He asked for more first responders to talk to witnesses, saying there were about 145 people present at the event.
The responder also said they were carefully pulling people out of the building basement.
When emergency services arrived, six people were rushed to hospital with non-life threatening injuries, while many others were treated on site.
A photograph from the Fire Marshal’s Office shows a chandelier and white bunting decorating the ceiling above the crumbled floorboards, as well as stacked benches that had been used for seating for the wedding before the collapse.
Another photo showed firefighters clustered around the barn, tending to the frightened guests.
Investigators believe the building, known as the Sap House, was likely over capacity before the collapse.
‘When first responders arrived on scene, they learned that venue staff and wedding guests had already provided initial first aid to some guests and used ladders to help individuals who fell through the collapsed floor,’ according to a statement from the Fire Marshall’s Office.
‘Before first responders arrived, other guests and staff helped some of the people who had fallen climb out of the basement with the aid of ladders.
‘Firefighters assisted additional guests and began on-scene evaluations of those who reported injuries.’
A probe is now ongoing to determine the cause of the harrowing incident.
