Nicola, who was working on the construction of the parking garage in Tel Aviv when it collapsed earlier today, gave an eyewitness account of the horrors he experienced during the collapse.
“I was working on floor ‘minus 1,’” Nicola told Army Radio. “I didn’t feel anything. Suddenly we heard falling rocks and we saw that the area was starting to sink; I couldn’t believe my eyes. There was a stairwell close by and we ran to it, helped along by the blasts of air caused by the collapse.”
Earlier, other workers had related that they had felt shaking in the building, foreshadowing what was to come.
“I felt that same [shaking] but I didn’t think it was anything significant; that kind of shaking happens all the time in parking garages.”
At the moment, attempts are still in progress to rescue five people missing under the rubble of the collapse. Deputy Commander of the Rescue Unit, Major Ariel Lubiner, described to Army Radio the work entailed at the scene: “It’s an integrated effort, with a combination of manual labor, hoes, shovels, evacuation baskets; mini loaders are also there to help, and mobile detection is enabled.
“Digging, digging, digging – until we get to concrete or – God forbid – something else,” Lubiner said.