Strong wind gusts caused a Discount Tire store at West 64th Avenue and Simms Street in Arvada to collapse like a house of cards late Thursday afternoon.
“There were six people that were treated on the scene for minor injuries and two were transported to the hospital,” said Amber Jones, a public information officer with the Arvada Fire Protection District.
Crews worked to stabilize the building and treat the injured in what met the definition of a mass casualty event. But all of the wounded could walk and injuries were minor, despite the severity of the collapse, Jones said.
Photos on Twitter showed damaged cars and debris strewn across the parking lot and a roof that had completed shifted off the collapsed building with the Discount Tire marquee sitting flat on the parking lot.
@9NEWS @DenverChannel discount Tire at 64th and Simms in Arvada collapsed about 20 minutes ago pic.twitter.com/g1wwlJPuBu
— Lynsey Beckett (@lynseydouglas) December 30, 2021
The National Weather Service in Boulder forecasted that wind gusts would reach 40 miles per hour in Arvada, but it clocked gusts at 115 mph at Rocky Flats, which is 6 miles north and west of the damaged tire store, and 98 mph at the White Ranch Open Space, which is about 10 miles west of the location.
A dashboard cam shared on Twitter captured the moment when a severe gust ripped the roof apart and collapsed the tire store, capturing a panicked employee running out as a metal roof panel flies through the air and crashes just above him on a nearby building.
I managed to get the Discount Tire in Arvada collapsing due to wind on my dashcam this afternoon. pic.twitter.com/r0P3RLilvy
— Ysabel (@ysabel) December 31, 2021
An Arvada fire engine responding to a call near Rocky Flats had a relatively new windshield severely damaged and blown out by the debris flying in the air, Jones said.
