Reuters AlertNet Lite - Building falls as winds hit Canada's Pacific coast

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Building falls as winds hit Canada's Pacific coast

15 Nov 2006 20:59:22 GMT
Source: Reuters

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Nov 15 (Reuters) - A storm packing heavy rain and high winds slammed into Canada's already soggy Pacific coast on Wednesday, uprooting trees, disrupting travel and possibly causing a building to collapse.

A four-storey building under construction in Vancouver collapsed, but fire officials said all the construction workers escaped injury because they were on a coffee break at the time of the incident.

Metal girders crushed cars in a a parking lot next to the construction site, according to a Reuters photographer at the scene.

The cause of the collapse was not immediately known, but a fire department spokesman told local media that the weather may have been a factor.

Winds gusting to 100 km/h (62 mph) smashed trees into houses in West Vancouver, forcing officials to evacuate about 30 homes in a subdivision in the wealthy suburb.

The storm forced BC Ferries to cancel most of its sailings. The ships serve as an extension of the provincial highway system, connecting the mainland with Vancouver Island and other smaller islands off the coast.

The storm also brought heavy rain to the region, which was still drying out from storms that had caused flooding in southwest British Columbia and western Washington state last week.

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Last updated:Wed Nov 15 21:01:00 2006