Three people are dead and nine others injured, after a privately-owned hangar under construction collapsed Wednesday near the Jackson Jet Center. The fatalities happened at the scene and five of the injured are in critical condition.
The first call came in around 5 p.m. to the dispatch center. When crews first arrived, fire officials worked to stabilize the scene and performed multiple victim rescues, according to a news release from the Boise Fire Department.
Boise Fire officials said they had to make some technical rescues because of where some of the victims were located.
The Ada County Coroners Office on Friday identified the three people killed:
- Craig Durrant, 59, of Boise
- Mariano Coc Och, 24, of Nampa
- Mario Sontay Tzi, 32, of Nampa
The construction company, Big D Builders out of Meridian, was fined in 2022 and 2023 for OSHA violations over employee fall risk. They also had previous violations for ladder use.
Boise Police, Gowen Field Fire Department and Ada County Paramedics also responded to the scene. Eight fire engines, three ladder trucks, two safety offices, two battalion chiefs, one division chief, a heavy rescue unit and 12 ambulances were on scene throughout the evening.
“Tonight, there was a catastrophic collapse of a metal structure at a construction site. First responders found a hectic scene and worked to secure and rescue victims,” wrote Division Chief of Operations Aaron Hummel in the release. “The Boise Airport, City of Boise, and all first responders extend their deepest sympathies to those impacted.”
Hummel said during a media briefing just before 7 p.m. on Wednesday that 30 people were in the area at the time of the hangar collapse. All were accounted for.
It is not known what caused the collapse at this time, but the site is secure and there is no further risk of collapse. OSHA representatives are on-site investigating, and Wright Street will be closed for the rest of the night as crews work.
"There was a large scale collapse of the building, the framework of the building," said Hummel during the media briefing. "I don't know what caused it, but I can tell you that it was a pretty ... global collapse that occurred in the main structural members ... came down was fairly catastrophic."
The collapse happened on City of Boise property, but no city-owned buildings were impacted by the collapse and Boise Airport did not cease operations.
BoiseDev reports that earlier in January, a large steel structure went up, which photos show has since collapsed. Hummel confirmed in the briefing that the project was in its early stages, with only the framework up.
The Boise Fire Department has turned the investigation over to OSHA. Over the next few weeks, an OSHA team will be speaking to witnesses and gathering evidence.
