Student found alive in rubble

A Washburn student trapped in the rubble of the Whiting collapse was found alive and conscious this morning.

Jeff Tippings, 20, a sophomore at Washburn, was waiting for his Walk/Jog class to begin when a crane crashed into the east wall of Whiting. Tippings was trapped for 3 hours.

Tippings is in serious but stable condition at Stormont-Vail Hospital in Topeka. He has a broken arm, three broken ribs, suffered a concussion, and abrasions on his skin. Tippings is expected to be released from the hospital as early as tomorrow morning.

“I was really scared that no one would be able to get to be. I started screaming when I was first buried but no one answered,” said Tippings.

Rick Hansen, a volunteer for the Red Cross Kansas Captiol Chapter, heard a voice under the rubble he was closely monitoring and quickly went for help. Tippings was under portions of the collapsed wall and could not move.

“I am so thankful that I was in the right place at the right time because he needed help. It took about a half hour for three men to free him from the rubble,” said Hansen. “I just hope that we can find more people because I know people are still missing family and friends.”

Tippings family was contacted immediately and went to see him at the hospital. They are just glad to know he is safe.

“We were so worried because we knew he had class around that time. It is a blessing from God that he is safe with us today. Washburn was very well organized and contacted us immediately, we were very grateful,” said Tippings mother, Susan Tippings.

Farley releases letter of sympathy

Washburn and Topeka community,

The events that have ensued the past few hours have unveiled a great tragedy to Washburn University and the Topeka community.

On behalf of Washburn University, myself, the students, staff and faculty express the sincerest sympathy for those families directed affected by the tragedy.

At this time, workers are searching the rubble in hopes of rescuing any persons who may be trapped under debris. We are asking all to stay clear of Whiting Field House as a precaution for the building possibly being unstable The university will continue to update the community as soon as new information is availible.

After debris is cleared and all persons are accounted for, there will be an evaluation of the building’s stability as well as a damage assessment. Until we can complete these items, there will be no classes held in Whiting.

Other arrangements have been made for students and faculty with classes or offices in Whiting Field House.

Our thoughts are with the families who have lost and are missing a loved one.

Sincerely,

Jerry Farley

Timely Notification Bulletin

Timely Notification Bulletin

**Thursday, November 16th, 2010 **

In compliance with the “Timely Notice” provisions of the federal Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Police and Campus Crime Statistics Act of 1998 the Washburn University Police Department is advising the campus community of:

** Building Collapse **

Reported:

On Thursday November 16^th, 2010 at approximately 4:45 P.M. the hoist of a crane being used to lift a statue onto Whiting Fieldhouse fell in the Northeast side of the building causing severe damage to the building.

All persons are to stay away from Whiting. The building is in the process of being evacuated.

For information on students, staff or faculty, please call (785) 673-1482.

All drives on the east side of campus are being blocked to all persons entering campus.
Submitted by: C. Enos, WUPD
Target: Students, Faculty & Staff
Date: Thursday, November 16^th 2010

No timeline for Whiting reopening

As search and rescue teams continue to sift through the rubble at Whiting Field House, plans have been put in place for students.

Whiting will be closed to all until clean-up and assessment of the stability of the building is complete.

There will be no classes in Whiting until further notification. All classes that were scheduled in Whiting will be held in the basement of Mabee library at designated times unless further specified by the instructor.

All other classes on campus will remain scheduled unless instructor decides differently.

A candlelight vigil will be at the bell tower for the people who lost their lives or who are still missing in this tragic event at 7 pm Friday November 17.

For updates, please call (785) 673-1482.

Crane operator suffered heart attack

A crane’s hoist boom used by Moto Construction to help move a statue of Craig Schurig, Washburn’s head football coach, onto the roof of Whiting fell into the northeast side of the building at 4:45 pm today.

The crane’s operator, Curtis Conley, suffered a heart attack while operating the crane.

At this point, there have been three reported fatalities including Conley.

The type of crane used was a Crawler-Mounted Latticework Boom Crane. The hoist boom, which carries whatever object is being raised, is operated manually to move up or down or to extend. The hoist boom is what fell into the building.

Conley had been a crane operator for 25 years and worked for Moto Construction for 20 years.

“Joe was a great man and it is sad that he passed that way but I know he would want our focus to be on helping other people get to safety,” said John Moto, owner of Moto Construction.

Dr. Jerry Farley, Washburn’s president, has urged all students and members of the community to stay clear of Whiting while crews search for people.

“It is a great tragedy,” said Farley. “Our thoughts and prayers are with Joe’s family but this tragedy may not be over. Our recovery crews are working diligently and hurriedly to help anyone who may have been the path of the crane.”

Jack Jackson, a Washburn sophomore, saw the crane run into Whiting. He ran to a help phone located south of Stoffer Science Hall at the west end of the parking lot to make the Washburn police aware.

“I just knew it was not good, I had no idea the crane operated had a heart attack, all I knew was that I needed to get help,” said Jackson.

At this point The Washburn Police Department has blocked all roads leading into campus. Emergency services from the area have been called in to assist with searching and transporting people to hospitals if needed.

“We sent out a timely warning in hopes of making all students aware of what has happened,” said Mike Mitchell, Washburn Law Enforcement office “We have evacuated the building and our main focus is getting anyone who may be trapped beneath the rubble out.”

“Fortunately, there are not many people in Whiting at this time of day,” said Mitchell.

Washburn University’s Whiting building located on the East side of campus was just renovated for $6.9 million. Renovations were completed in  August 2009.

Washburn’s main telephone number was set up for parents and community members to call and receive updates about the building. For information, please call (785) 673-1482.  

Search contines for collapse victims

The collapse of the east wall of the Whiting Field House affected more than just the gym.

A little over a year after the $6.9 million renovation was complete on Whiting, a crane operator suffered a heart attack and lost control of his crane as it smashed into the side of the building.

Part of the east wall was knocked down, 7 of the new 18 offices suffered damage, the ceiling of the new weight room was damaged and glass was shattered out of the trophy cases in the entrance of Whiting. The building can hold up to 2,500 people.

“There has been significant damage to Whiting and to the areas surrounding where the crane hit. As of right now the building is not safe to be in because it has not been inspected and cleared,” said Washburn Police Sergeant Alan Whitford.

Whiting is closed to anyone who is not part of the search team looking through the rubble for trapped people. The Red Cross Kansas Capitol Chapter is looking for anyone interested in volunteering and should visit their website at thinkred.org.

The University has not yet decided what the plans for more renovations to the building at this time. Washburn is extremely concerned with finding people still alive in the rubble and helping anyone injured in the accident.

“We haven’t even gave the renovation process a second thought. That is our last priority. We need to find survivors and help all those in need and reach out to their families. We are deeply sad about this event,” said Washburn President Jerry Farley.

As of now, Washburn has canceled it’s classes for the remainder of the week. School will be back in session on Monday and classes being held in Whiting will be rescheduled to another available area on campus. For more class updates visit www.washburn.edu/classupdates

Crane Operator

MicAt the time of the accident and heart attack of the crane operator, Curtis Conley lost control of his crane that caused the damage to whiting.
Curtis Conley was very capable of controlling a crane and has worked with cranes for more than 20 years of his life.  Conley 52 years of age completed his certification from Associated Training Services (ATS) school in 1986.  Since that time Conley has worked with cranes and has never had a problem. 

At ATS Conely went through a 3 step process to learn how to control a crane efficiently.  The first step included training on the basic principles of cranes, crane safety, and operating a crane.  The second step included communication which address abstractions, fear and lack of experience among other types of communication.  The second step also included preventive maintenance, wire rope, and computer aids/operator aids.  The last step that Conley experienced at ATS included information on load charts, advanced operational techniques, lift planning and EMERGENCY PROCEDURE.  The emergency procedure covered accident prevention and investigation, the hazards of power line contact, and various failures that may occur during lifting operations. 

These are some of the things that Conley was aware of but due to a second heart attack he lost control of the crane.