Fifth Avenue remains closed after Bluff building collapse

A stretch of Fifth Avenue in Pittsburgh’s Bluff neighborhood remains closed after an unoccupied building collapsed on Wednesday, city public safety officials said.

First responders were called to the building, near the intersection of Marion Street and Fifth Avenue, shortly before 5 p.m. Wednesday.

Public safety officials said a search indicated no one was inside the building when it collapsed. The one-block section of Fifth Avenue will remain closed.

Public safety spokesperson Emily Bourne told Trib news partner WTAE that the building is condemned.

“However, it’s also known to be frequently utilized by unhoused individuals as a place for them to take refuge and sleep in,” Bourne said. “As a result, when fire and EMS responded to the scene, they treated this as an occupied structure collapse until we can know for certain that there was nobody inside of the building.”