DAVENPORT, Iowa — It has been one month since the apartment building at 324 Main St. partially collapsed.
In the months before the west wall fell, engineers and city officials visited the building nearly a dozen times. Three men died in the collapse and one survivor was left with a life-altering injury. The building has been torn down, and investigations into its collapse are underway.
Since then, the city and building owner Andrew Wold have been sued. Other buildings he owns have been condemned or are under investigation.
News 8 also has a collection of ongoing lawsuits and resources available to survivors.
To watch our coverage of the collapse, check out this playlist on YouTube
May 26
Co-owner of R. A. Masonry witnesses windows shattering as bricks drop from the exterior
Ryan Shaffer, co-owner of a masonry company that was contacted by building owner Andrew Wold for a quote, said he watched 324 Main St. degrade over several months. His company gave Wold a bid to "support the building all the way up, replace the section of wall on the inside that was missing and then redo the façade of the brick on the outside," but was rejected for its cost.
While working nearby, he noticed bricks falling and water pouring out of the downspout when it hadn't rained recently. He said part of the building dropped, shattering a vertical strip of windows.
May 27
2:46 p.m. | 911 call made to Scott Emergency Communications Center
Ryan Shaffer saw workers continue construction on the building and warned them to stay away.
Workers told their boss about Shaffer's warning, prompting the boss to call 911 to ask emergency services to check out the building. He said one of his workers noticed the exterior wall "wasn't looking good."
Firefighters responded to the scene five minutes after the initial call and left four minutes later.
May 28
3:30 p.m. | Co-owner of R. A. Masonry tells workers to evacuate
Ryan Shaffer repeated his warning to the workers at 324 Main St. on Sunday. Workers left the building at 3:30 and the west wall of it collapsed just an hour and 25 minutes later.
4:55 p.m. | West wall of The Davenport collapses
First responders came to the scene of the hotel-turned-apartment building Sunday evening. At least six stories caved in on the west side of the building facing the parking lot, with some apartment rooms completely destroyed.
8:00 p.m. | Mayor and first responders hold press conference
Davenport Mayor Mike Matson said multiple agencies responded to the scene and were continuing to search for people that were unaccounted for.
Davenport Fire Chief Mike Carlsten said fire crews rescued seven individuals and escorted a dozen more out of the building. Teams would continue to work through the night. Gas and water leaks were found, but utility companies shut them off.
Rich Oswald, development and neighborhood services director for the City of Davenport spoke on the building's known condition leading up to the collapse. He said the owner had permits to make exterior repairs.
Quanishia "Peach" Berry rescued from the wreckage, leg amputated at the scene
Peach and her wife Lexus Berry were evacuating when Peach was trapped in a pile of rubble. Several hours after the collapse, she was found pinned. Doctors determined her leg had to be amputated to free her. She was sent to the hospital to recover.
May 29
7:00 a.m. | Second press conference with fire chief
Fire Chief Mike Carlsten announced that there was nobody else trapped in the building after rescue and cadaver dogs from Iowa Task Force 1 swept the site. One person had been extracted from the rubble.
"I have no known individuals (who) are trapped in that facility," Carlsten said.
9:45 a.m. | Efforts transition from rescue to recovery
The Davenport Fire Department turned control of the site over to the Davenport Development and Neighborhood Services Department after they believed all residents to be out of the building. Demolition was expected to begin the next morning on Tuesday.
Afternoon | City sends out a press release
A press release distributed shortly after noon confirmed the demolition would begin early the next morning due to the unstable condition of the property.
Evening | Lisa Ann Brooks emerges from fourth floor window hours ahead of demolition
Crowds gathered outside the building Monday evening to protest the upcoming demolition, as families still had loved ones unaccounted for.
A woman emerged from a fourth-floor window of the building more than 24 hours after the collapse, increasing the intensity of the protests.
By Monday night, the city said the building was still in danger of imminent collapse. The Davenport Police Department said they were working with families to account for all remaining individuals. Mayor Mike Matson made a statement expressing his condolences.
May 30
6:07 a.m. | City says demolition is only being staged, timing was still being evaluated
Officials said immediate demolition was never intended, but they wanted to stage the area for tear-down quickly. Mayor Mike Matson said the city was trying to determine how to tear down the building while maintaining the dignity of the people that might have been killed.
10:30 a.m. | Third press conference, search continues
Officials announced that the Davenport Fire Department and the MABAS 43 Technical Rescue Team would conduct additional searches, rescuing several animals in the process.
Mayor Mike Matson said five people were still unaccounted for, with at least two feared to be stuck in rubble too dangerous to search.
The city's consulting engineers explained that the age of the building and method of collapse made search and rescue difficult. Debris piles were holding up the rest of the building.
Family members of Ryan Hitchcock and Branden Colvin, two men that were unaccounted for in the building, protested and spoke at the press conference. Colvin's aunt expressed her frustration with the city's willingness to demolish quickly, but one of Hitchcock's family members asked the crowd to allow the city to proceed.
Andrew Wold fined
The City of Davenport fined building owner Andrew Wold and his business Davenport Hotel LLC $300 plus court fees for not keeping 324 Main St. safe and sanitary. He was ordered to appear in court Friday, June 9 at 8:30 a.m. to pay the fine.
May 31
Afternoon | Andrew Wold releases statement
Wold and his property management team shared "thoughts and prayers" for the families affected and thanked city services for their help.
5:43 p.m. | City releases documents
These documents included structural engineering reports, violation notices and resident complaints.
June 1
10:00 a.m. | Fourth press conference, 3 men unaccounted for
The city released the names of the three remaining tenants that were unaccounted for — Branden Colvin, Ryan Hitchcock and Daniel Prien.
Officials said they did not order an evacuation because they relied on the engineer's assurances that the building remained safe.
The city announced that people who lived in the building would be eligible for $6,000 from the city and $5,000 from the state if they met certain income requirements. Businesses affected could also receive payments.
Trishna Pradhan, the city's chief building official, was confirmed to have resigned in the aftermath of the collapse. He visited the building on May 25 and erroneously reported it had passed an inspection. He said he attempted to change the inspection result to "incomplete," but a technical glitch changed the result to "failed."
June 2
10:00 a.m. | Fifth press conference, Iowa task force completes search for survivors
Authorities said the search for survivors had been completed. They would be moving on to shore up the structure so recovery efforts could begin. The building remained dangerous and continued to shift. Debris holding the building up may have also contained the remains of people killed in the collapse.
Overnight | Crews remove falling hazards from the building while recovery efforts continue
The City of Davenport began removing pieces of the partially collapsed building to control falling hazards Friday night. This was said to help first responders with their recovery efforts.
June 3
11:59 a.m. | Body of Branden Colvin recovered at collapse site
Officials confirmed the details to News 8 the next day. Crews were working 12-hour rotating shifts to remove debris.
June 4
12:45 p.m. | Body of Ryan Hitchcock recovered
June 5
2:30 a.m. | Body of Daniel Prien recovered
10:00 a.m. | Final press conference, releases victims' information
The State Medical Examiner ruled that all three men had the same cause and manner of death. The cause was multiple blunt force injuries with mechanical asphyxia, the manner was accidental.
The Iowa Task Force 1 wrapped up their search and recovery efforts.
June 7
5:30 p.m. | First Davenport City Council meeting since the collapse
Protestors stood outside before the meeting demanding accountability. Mayor Matson began with a moment of silence. City council approved $600,000 of emergency funds to assist families and businesses displaced by the disaster.
June 8
Neighboring building evacuated
The city evacuated Executive Square Building at 400 and 410 North Main St., 324 Main St.'s neighbor. The majority had already been evacuated immediately following the collapse.
June 9
Wold and his lawyer don't appear in court
Judge Catherine Cartee called Wold's lawyer Jack O'Brien and recorded the conversation for the record. O'Brien pleaded "no contest," but the judge denied it, demanding that he and Wold appear in court in person.
June 11
City provides explanation for May 27 911 call
Chief Strategy Officer Sarah Ott said responding firefighters "observed active work occurring and external shoring was in place and observable." She said more than 24 hours had passed after the firefighters' observation.
June 12
Morning | Demolition begins on building
The process was expected to take several weeks from tear-down to debris clearing.
Wold pleads guilty to $300 fine from Davenport
After a continuance from his Friday, June 9 court date, Andrew Wold agreed to pay the City of Davenport $300 plus court fees for failing to maintain 324 Main St. in a safe, sanitary and structurally sound condition.
Afternoon | Mayor Matson gives State of the City address
After highlighting the city's accomplishments, he thanked first responders and shared condolences for residents and their families.
June 14
City of Davenport hires engineering firms to investigate the collapse
Chicago-based firm White Birch Group LLC and SOCOTEC Engineering were hired by the city and are reported to have experience in this type of investigation. No end date was given, but the final report will be available to appropriate agencies first before being released to the public.
5:30 p.m. | Second city council meeting
Without an agenda item that seemed to address the collapse, people at the meeting expressed frustration with the city and Andrew Wold.
June 15
Davenport condemns one of Wold's buildings
A former tenant of the property on 11th and Christie St. said an electrician told her she was overpaying on her utilities. Wold was difficult to work with in resolving the utilities issue, not making an effort to comply with the lease.
June 16
4:00 p.m. | Demolition halted by Scott County court order
Lawyers of Peach and Lexus Berry filed a motion to halt demolition in order to conduct an independent investigation of the rubble. It was granted several days later, ordering demolition stop until Tuesday, June 20 at 8:30 p.m.
June 19
Trucks begin hauling rubble into a designated hole at Scott County Landfill
Due to a large chance of asbestos contamination, rubble was sent to an area separate from other waste operations. Residents were not permitted to sift through the rubble.
June 21
City reports building as completely dismantled
Site cleanup began, and was expected to take several more weeks.