Demolition resumes at collapse site

Troy Graham, Inquirer Staff Writer Last updated: Tuesday, June 25, 2013, 1:08 AM

Demolition at the site of a fatal building collapse at 22d and Market Streets resumed Monday, with officers from the police Crime Scene Unit on hand in case pertinent evidence was discovered.

Workers began by removing debris from the lot that once housed a Salvation Army thrift store, flattened this month when an unsupported wall from a demolition site next door toppled. Six people were killed and 14 injured.

Work also was poised to begin next door, where the owner, Richard Basciano, was negotiating to hire a separate demolition outfit.

Basciano, who has long owned significant portions of the 2100 and 2200 blocks of Market Street, recently decided to redevelop the area. The contractor he initially hired to demolish several buildings there, Griffin T. Campbell, was a sole proprietor with a criminal record.

Benschop has been charged with six counts of involuntary manslaughter and other crimes.

Control of the parcels, which were considered a crime scene in the weeks after the June 5 collapse, has been returned to the owners, Basciano and the Salvation Army.

The Salvation Army's insurance carrier retained Mellon Certified Restoration of Yeadon to demolish and clear debris from the thrift store parcel.

Tom O'Grady, a property-loss specialist for Mellon, said workers also were seeking to recover personal belongings of victims and Salvation Army employees.

He said the company would work with Crime Scene Unit officers, who were on site Monday but not working in the debris piles.

Go here to read the rest:
Demolition resumes at collapse site