Window Cleaning Swing Stage Collapse in Calgary

Two men dangling from ropes at the side of a Calgary high-rise were rescued today by firefighters after one side of their swing stage collapsed.

Two workers rescued after hanging by ropes from downtown Calgary office tower: A dramatic rescue of two men left dangling 10 stories in the air off of a downtown high rise captivated the attention of hundreds of office workers Monday. Fire crews was called to the Elveden Centre in the 700 block of 7th Avenue SW. around 10:30 a.m. to rescue two workers who had been left stranded, clinging to their life lines, after the platform beneath them collapsed. Both men were successfully lowered into the bucket of an awaiting fire truck shortly before noon.

Two window washers are being rescued from hanging by ropes from a downtown building after a platform collapsed beneath them shortly before 11 a.m. Rescue crews are on the scene at the Elvenden Centre on the 700 block of 7 Avenue S.W.

From a south-facing window on the 17th floor of Sun Life Plaza, Shovik Sengupta watched this morning’s harrowing scene unfold. The data analyst said he looked out the window shortly before 11 a.m. to see two men dangling from ropes. “At the first they weren’t moving. They were staying very still. I don’t know if it’s because they are injured or because they don’t want to mess up their safety harness,” said Sengupta. Sengupta watched as a rescuer lowered himself to the men who were clinging to ropes approximately 10 stories above the ground.

Another angle captured.

Below where the men had been dangling, the ground appears to be littered with debris, including buckets and window washing equipment. “We missed the fall but we heard the sirens and we all came to the window,” he said. “At first it was pretty jarring to see two guys hanging from the building who aren’t moving.” “It’s never a comfortable thing to see first thing on a Monday morning and you hope for the best.” A spokesperson with the Calgary fire department said both workers were wearing lifelines when the platform collapsed. No injuries have been reported and investigators are looking into the cause of the accident.

Emergency crews try to rescue second man after his scaffolding gave way on a downtown highrise in Calgary.

A man is wheeled off on a stretcher after being rescued from a Calgary highrise when some scaffolding broke.

Workers dangling from Calgary scaffolding saved: Two men dangling from ropes at the side of a Calgary high-rise were rescued today by firefighters after one side of their swing stage collapsed. Fire crews reached the first man just after 11 a.m. MT in a rescue basket. Gathering crowds applauded as he was brought to the ground. He then walked himself to a stretcher and was brought inside the building. Crews reached the second worker about 30 minutes later. He gave a thumbs up to onlookers as he was being loaded into an ambulance. Both men were dangling eight to nine storeys above ground. The extent of their injuries is unknown.