Homes Evacuated After Partial Wall Collapse

DENVER (CBS4) - A duplex next to a house where an exterior wall collapsed on Tuesday morning had to be evacuated. The vacant house is a total loss.

It seems the brick wall came apart and crumbled, exposing the interior of the home at 3027 Marion Street in Five Points.

No one was inside the home when the wall came down. The home is vacant.

Engineers examined the damage and determined the entire house must come down because it's not structurally safe.

A duplex next to the collapsed wall was evacuated as a precaution. What caused the collapse is being investigated.

Melissa Taylor with the Denver Fire Department said 40 percent of the exterior wall collapsed but it is unlikely the cause will ever be known. The fire department is working with the building department in Denver to determine if the home needs to be torn down immediately.

"This house is in imminent danger of collapsing so we've got building engineers on the way to determine how we're going to handle this but both of these side houses will remain vacated for right now," said Taylor.

The duplex with two families remained evacuated on Tuesday evening, because of the threat of collapse. The families were allowed to return to get clothes, medication and whatever else they need.

Firefighters told the families they could expect to be out of their home for up to a week.

One family told CBS4 they were glad that no one was hurt.