Building collapses in downtown Madrid: ‘I felt a terrible tremor’

A building has collapsed in central Madrid, on No. 4 Hileras Street of the Spanish capital. So far, four people are reported missing — according to Madrid city officials, three men and one woman. The number of injured remains unclear. One of the injured was taken to hospital by ambulance with apparently serious bone fractures.

At the scene, 11 units of the Madrid Fire Department were working following the partial collapse of several floors in the building, which was undergoing renovation. Several construction workers are being treated for injuries. One was taken to hospital with a leg fracture, while the others suffered only minor injuries and were treated by psychologists for shock, according to Madrid Emergency Services.

The SAMUR emergency ambulance service said that some workers have reported missing colleagues. Madrid regional premier Isabel Díaz Ayuso visited the scene. while the mayor of the city of Madrid, José Luis Martínez Almeida, canceled his participation in the Bloomberg LSE European City Leadership Initiative in London to return to the capital.

There is confusion over the number of missing people. Initially, four were reported missing, but sources from the National Police have only confirmed two so far. Firefighters, on the other hand, say there are five missing. The police canine unit is on site to search for any other possible victims.

The Spanish government delegate in Madrid, Francisco Martín, told the press that this is a workplace accident and that the exact number of workers present at the site is still being determined. He also stated that authorities are “analyzing the possible impact on neighboring buildings to take the appropriate measures. The entire perimeter has been evacuated.”

According to the spokesperson for Madrid Emergency Services, crews are currently stabilizing the building’s façade so they can begin clearing the debris from the fallen floors, and allow the Municipal Police Canine Unit to enter and search for the missing.

The building, located near the popular square Puerta del Sol, was being renovated to become a four-star hotel. A construction worker at the site, who asked to remain anonymous, said: “There could have been up to 40 people inside the building. At the moment of the collapse, we heard a noise from the floors, and then just a cloud of dust.”

The manager of Madrid’s famous San Ginés chocolatería, located on the next street over, told this newspaper by phone that there are currently many National Police officers and ambulances working at the scene. “The whole building collapsed, and we can’t get through. It’s full of ambulances and police, and they won’t let us in,” she explained.

Sources involved in the investigation said: “At least six floors have collapsed, and there could be at least one person trapped, if not more.” “The information is still very confusing,” they added.

“The building that collapsed had been abandoned for a long time and was under construction; they had installed a massive crane on the scaffolding. I had been told they were going to make a hotel and that the work would take two years,” said a resident who felt the collapse. “About half an hour ago, I felt a terrible tremor in the street, and a huge cloud of dust rose in front of the building, leaving people scared and confused,” she added.

According to residents, five stretchers and a rapid response from emergency services were present at the scene. Amelia Solas, a local resident, confirmed the shock in the neighborhood. The scene — with dust, debris on the road, and the immobile crane — has left residents very distressed.

“The building has completely collapsed, and they are confirming that several construction workers are missing; they have evacuated all of us, and the street is cordoned off,” said the manager of the shop Trajes Flamencos Lunares Blancos on Hileras Street.

Meanwhile, Miguel, who works at the restaurant El Cogollo in central Madrid, said that around 12:45 p.m., a cloud of dust filled the establishment, and everyone had to be evacuated. “From the outside, you can’t see anything; the façade looks the same, everything happened inside.” Miguel added that he felt the ground of his home shake, and when they looked outside, all they saw was a massive cloud of dust that reached as far as Madrid’s Teatro Real opera house, near the Ópera subway station.

Milagros García Benito, the owner of a hair salon across from the collapsed building, said she was opening her business when the building fell. “It was a horrifying, extremely loud crash. Everything filled with white dust that looked like smoke, but it wasn’t.” García explained that the building had been closed for a long time and that construction had been going on for the past six months.

According to the building register, the collapsed building was constructed in 1965, has six floors, and includes a basement parking garage. The plot measures 1,070 square meters.

The Municipal Police are allowing relatives of the construction workers who were on site at the time of the collapse to enter Hileras Street. Two men, who did not want to give their names, were allowed in because, they say, their brother was working there. They have been trying to reach him all morning without success. They did not provide their ages or make any further statements.

Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAÍS USA Edition