After a 28 hour search, emergency crews were able to rescue eight people from the rubble after a rooftop parking lot collapsed into the office space below on Thursday (July 14).
One employee who was reported missing was recovered shortly after 5 p.m. on Friday (July 15) but was declared dead by paramedics on scene.
Approximately 90 people were working in the 3438 Lougheed Hwy office space at the time of the incident. Most employees self-evacuated and eight where rescued by first arriving Vancouver Fire Rescue Services (VFRS) crews with two taken to hospital.
A crane was brought in on Thursday to remove giant slabs of cement that had fallen into the building. On Friday, a vacuum truck was used to take away debris and dirt from the site as they tried to find the man.
Fire Cheif Karen Fry expressed condolences to the man's family. "Our thoughts now shift to his family, friends and coworkers as they deal with this tragedy," she wrote on Twitter.
The collapse occurred when a bobcat-style loader was moving large piles of soil on the rooftop parking lot when it collapsed into the office space below.
A section of Lougheed Highway between Rupert Street and Boundary Road was closed due to the incident.
WorkSafeBC says it has launched an investigation to identify the cause and contributing factors of the incident. Vancouver Police are also investigating the scene.
With files from The Canadian Press.
