Building partially collapses in Pittsburgh's Uptown area

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- A building partially collapsed in Pittsburgh's Uptown area, spilling bricks and debris onto the ground.

The call about the partial collapse of the old Renaissance Publications building came in shortly after 3 p.m. on Wednesday, dispatchers said. There's yellow police tape up in front of the scene, where debris is scattered across the ground.

Pittsburgh Public Safety said there are additional collapse concerns around the remaining structure so crews will work through the emergency demolition process. Fifth Avenue from Marion Street to Pride Street and Marion Street between Fifth Avenue and Forbes Avenue will remain closed.

No injuries have been reported. The building was unoccupied, but Public Safety officials brought in drones because they were concerned that there may have been people experiencing homelessness who were living inside. Officials later said a thorough technical search showed no one was inside at the time.

Marco Merante, the manager of Merante Brothers Italian Market next-door, said the collapse was so loud he thought a bomb went off.

"I was sitting in the closest corner to the collapse. Everything on my cameras went black for a few seconds. There was debris thrown everywhere. The entire building was shaking, I thought it was falling in on top of me. Insane," he said.

The front of the building is still intact, and there's a blue condemnation notice posted.

It's unclear what led up to the collapse, but Merante said he's had concerns about the building for years and wishes something had been done sooner.