Two people are in a serious condition after a building collapsed at a construction site next to a service station in inner Sydney.
Emergency services were notified of the collapse at Ultimo just before 11am on Monday, and arrived to find a wall and roof had collapsed onto nearby cars.
A man in his 60s and a man in his 30s were removed from the rubble and taken to hospital in a serious condition.
One was taken to St Vincent’s Hospital Sydney, while the other was taken to Royal Prince Alfred Hospital.
Five others were assessed by paramedics but did not require hospitalisation.
Authorities are determining whether further structural damage is possible. (ABC News)
Fire and Rescue (FRNSW) Acting Superintendent Peter Murray said it was “a significant roof collapse”.
“A portion of that building has collapsed and some of the debris has come down and fallen onto some cars parked within the service station area,” he said.
“It’s a situation that’s obviously very dangerous, particularly with the bricks, the walls, the weight of some of those bricks coming down as well.
“[It’s] very fortunate that more people weren’t hurt.”
Bricks fell on cars parked next to the building. (ABC News: Lia Harris)
‘It was really scary’
Ashleigh White, who manages the building behind the site of the collapse, said a tenant reported the incident to her.
Ms White said tenants were worried about the situation. (ABC News)
“They just said they heard a very loud bang,” she said.
“The building did actually shake, but I have been notified by the landlord that back when he rebuilt this he made it earthquake safe.”
Ms White said approximately between 50 and 100 people were evacuated.
“They were a bit concerned, I would be too, but they all got out pretty quickly and the police were wonderful just making sure everyone was out and safe.”
Mr Khorianto was making coffees when he heard the building partially collapse nearby. (ABC News)
Ryan Khorianto was working at a nearby cafe when he said he heard a “big bang, boom”.
“The noise was very loud and two or three men were screaming,” he said.
“I just stopped making coffee and then ran out because all the people were running to the location as well … It was really scary.”
Two people have been seriously injured after a building collapsed in inner Sydney. (ABC News: Adam Griffiths)
Acting Superintendent Murray said there were no reports of anyone missing, but crews are working to make sure that information was correct.
“Firefighters remain on scene at this time, assessing the building for any signs of any further structural collapse to ensure the safety of the area,” he said.
“We also have our remote pilot aircraft system, or drones, to assist us. That allows us to access dangerous sites without putting firefighters at risk.”
He said the service station had been shut down as a precaution.
“We’re doing atmospheric monitoring at the moment and also looking at things like any electrical hazards, gas hazards,” Acting Superintendent Murray said.
NSW Police and emergency services are at the scene. (ABC News: Adam Griffiths)
Three FRNSW teams are at the scene, including urban search and rescue firefighters, alongside multiple ambulance units and NSW Police.
The warehouse was previously home to a rehearsal studio but had since been approved for demolition, to be replaced by a multi-storey mixed-use development.
Macroview Projects, which is managing the development, has been contacted for comment.
Acting Superintendent Murray said the site which remained cordoned off had been handed over to SafeWork NSW for further investigation.