Ceiling collapses on church meeting

PAWTUCKET, R.I. (WPRI) - Several people were hurt Tuesday night when a section of ceiling collapsed in a church basement in Pawtucket Tuesday night.

It happened at the Park Place Congregational Church at 71 Park Place. Eyewitnesses said two meetings were going on in the church basement. While one meeting was going on, the participants heard screaming from another meeting room.

"When the floor collapsed, of course you could hear boom, boom, boom, and then the people started screaming and running around," said eyewitness Tina Oxx.

"We felt the room shake. We heard tremendous rumbling. We weren't sure if walls were coming down. If the floor was moving. We didn't know what was happening. We thought there was an earthquake," said another eyewitness.

Officials with the Pawtucket Fire Department said a 10-by-10 section of the basement ceiling fell down on top of that meeting. They said the material was similar to concrete, used when the church was built 70 to 80 years ago.

Six to nine people were taken to the hospital with injuries ranging from neck and back pains to lacerations.  Firefighters say the injuries appear to be non-life threatening.

The church's pastor told Eyewitness News he was not aware of any structural problems.

A building inspector arrived on scene shortly after the collapse to examine the building.