New Orleans Stunned by Hotel Collapse

A Hard Rock Hotel under construction at the edge of New Orleans' historic French Quarter collapsed Saturday morning, leaving at least one person dead and three unaccounted for, authorities said. City officials and Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards confirmed the death. The building was under construction at the corner of Rampart Street and Canal Street, a broad boulevard just outside the Quarter, lined with restaurants hotels and retailers. Canal, which carries six lanes of traffic divided by a wide median where streetcars roll, separates the Quarter from the city's main business district.

WWL-TV aired a viewer's dramatic video of the collapse, showing upper floors falling on top of each other before one side of the building toppled to the ground. Another video on social media was taken by someone aboard one of the city's famous streetcars as it approached the site while the building was collapsing. It showed what looked like a metal structure—part of the building or a piece of construction equipment—tumbling to the ground and people running from the scene as clouds of dust billowed up and around the streetcar, obscuring the view like a thick fog. Authorities say 18 people were taken to a hospital for treatment. All were considered stable.

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