Removal of collapsed Vancouver crane underway after devastating fire

A City of Vancouver official says a huge crane that crashed down on a busy street will likely be removed in two days, after blocking the route for more than two weeks.

Saul Schwebs says crews are "demolishing the crane, not salvaging it."

The chief building official says British Columbia's worker safety agency, WorkSafeBC, gave the green light for the operation on Tuesday, and debris should be cleared from the site by Thursday, although there may be further cleanup.

Schwebs says the aim is to restore bus services on the stretch of West 41st Avenue by Labour Day after the route sustained extensive damage in the crane collapse that occurred as a fire destroyed an apartment building under construction.

Trevor Connelly, deputy chief of operations for Vancouver Fire Rescue Services told a news briefing that the blaze that triggered the collapse and damaged nearby homes was accidental, although the exact cause remains unknown.

Miranda Myles with Vancouver's emergency management agency says the city is still supporting 15 people displaced by the incident.

The Aug. 6 fire in a six-storey building under construction in the Dunbar neighbourhood spread and damaged nine homes in the area.

Schwebs says the crane removal operation had been delayed by the need to preserve evidence for the investigation into what went wrong.

"We really want to learn some lessons from this," he said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 21, 2024.