3 Killed When Billboard Collapses at Georgia Mall
A 35,000-pound billboard collapsed at a suburban Atlanta shopping center Thursday, killing three construction workers who were crushed by the falling steel.
A fourth worker was pulled from the wreckage and hospitalized in good condition, authorities said.
“We heard this big crash, so we looked over and we saw this huge sign just fall,” Truly Scott, who witnessed the incident, told WAGA-TV. “There was blood everywhere. It was awful to see.”
The billboard, roughly 30 by 60 feet, was under construction when it collapsed just before noon at the shopping center. It crashed onto two cars and into the side of a building below. No one else was hurt.
The workers who died fell 40 feet as the sign buckled. They were identified as Josh Fowler, 23; his brother Anthony, 21; and Lance Stofiel, 26. The injured worker was identified as electrician Clyde Elrod, 37.
The billboard was designed to switch among three advertisements using rotating boards. Structural work on the billboard was complete, and the crew was doing electrical work, Gwinnett County fire Lt. David Dusik said.
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