FOX 21/27 – WFXR Roanoke/WWCW Lynchburg News, WeatherFormer Civil War hospital partially collapses in Lynchburg

A quiet day was quickly disrupted, when the back of this building on Dunbar drive in Lynchburg collapsed. Richard Jordan lives behind it.

"We just felt something shock and we came out here and seen the building it was just torn down," says Jordan.

The crashing sound of bricks startled Demetris Cabler.

"It was just looking at the TV and heard something and it sounded like the world was coming to an end," says Cabler.

Local historians say the building was used as a hospital during the civil war. More recently, fire officials with the Lynchburg fire department say it was a vacant warehouse. But for the last few months, Cabler says she believed the building would collapse.

"The brick was getting too loose in it," says Cabler.

Luckily no one was injured; a sigh of relief for Jordan, whose children could have been playing by the building.

"I worry about the people that is walking down the street on the other side because it could fall towards the street and plus the school bus goes through there too, so you got to worry about the kids on the bus walking through that way," says Jordan.

Since there is the potential for further collapse, the Lynchburg fire department has a road block in place between 12th a federal street which will stay until this bit of history is demolished.

We have been working with the Lynchburg news and advance on this story. They found out the building belongs to Harold Gibson in South Carolina. Over the phone Gibson said, "our major concern right now is safety, and then make arrangements probably to demolish it." He also said the loss of the building will is a financial hit since they have a mortgage on it and have to pay for the demolition.