Partial roof collapse shuts down main post office in Pikeville

PIKEVILLE, Ky. (WYMT) - Officials with the Pikeville Police Department confirmed a roof partially collapsed at the Pikeville Commons apartment complex Saturday.

The collapse brought Pikeville Fire Department to the commons area around 6 p.m., where they cleared the building to being assessing the situation.

“Life safety is obviously our first consideration. Secondary would be just making sure that we stabilize the scene to make sure that no further incidents occur, make sure no further collapse happens, and of course if there was anyone trapped we would make sure to get those individuals out,” said Pikeville FD PIO Nicholas Fleming. “In this incident, there was no one trapped and it wasn’t as major of an incident as maybe it was led to believe.”

No one was injured in the incident and the building was cleared, but the cause of the collapse is still unclear.

“We do know that there was a storm at the time earlier that may have played a factor, as far as that goes.” Flaming said. “But as far as the actual collapse goes, it’s very minor as far as what we could tell. It’s just part of the roof, so I suspect repairs will be made fairly quickly.”

The main branch of the Pikeville post office, which is located under the section of the apartments, will remain closed as repairs continue.

A statement from the United States Postal Service reads in part “due to structural issues, officials have ordered the evacuation of the building that houses the Pikeville Main Post Office located at 281 Thompson Road. Starting Monday, June 5th, the Pikeville Main Post Office will be closed until further notice.”

The postal service also operates another branch on Main Street downtown where customers can pick up their mail and make purchases until the building can be repaired.

The remaining stores and apartments are unaffected by the collapse and officials say the repairs will likely be quick, since the damage is not as dramatic as it may seem.

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