Posted on Thursday, 06.13.13
An unidentified woman is taken away in an ambulance following the collapse of a deck at Shuckers Bar & Grill in North Bay Village Thursday night. FERNANDO PEINADO / MIAMI HERALD STAFF
MIAMI HERALD STAFF REPORT
A deck behind the popular Shuckers sports bar in North Bay Village collapsed Thursday night, spilling scores of customers watching the Miami Heat vs. San Antonio Spurs game into Biscayne Bay.
Dozens of police and fire-rescue units rushed to the scene after the sudden collapse, which happened about 9:45 [p.m., minutes before the game’s halftime. WSVN-Fox 7 reported that one person was taken to a hospital in critical condition and that four were listed in serious condition.
As helicopters circled over the scene, rescuers carried people from the scene on stretchers, one after another.
Chris Volz, 39, said he was sitting at the western end of the bar, about 10 feet from where the deck gave way. “Everybody’s watching the game. It sounded like a freight train, then everyone was gone. The deck went down like a V.” He said it happened in a split second and that no one had a chance to get away.
He said bartenders were diving into the water to help rescue the patrons. Fire trucks pulled to the water’s edge and extended their ladders over the water to help the patrons climb to safety.
Shuckers, at 1819 79th Street Causeway, lost power when the collapse happened, casting victims and rescuers alike into the dark.
Hernan Reyes, 21, and friend Crystal Infante, 23, were eating and watching then game when the deck, about five feet over the water, collapsed. Infante said the water was shallow enough for them to stand, but it was difficult for them to get out because wood, umbrellas, tables, chairs and other debris currounded them.
“There was a crack, and then we were in the water,” Infante said. “There was just a crack, and then we were in the water....It was really hard to get out, and you coudln’t find anyone.”
By 11 p.m., a triage unit had been set up in the parking lot, and victims were still being removed from the water.. Traffic on the 79th Street Causeway was closed off in both directions.
Police and rescue units from North Bay Village, Miami-Dade County, Miami, Miami Beach and El Portal were on the scene within minutes.
This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
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