NEW ORLEANS — Crews from the Louisiana Urban Search and Rescue Task Force are working 17 hours a day to locate a final missing construction worker following the partial collapse of the Hard Rock Hotel construction site in New Orleans.
The task force is made up of first responders from several agencies from Orleans Parish, Jefferson Parish and the State Fire Marshal’s Office.
The group trains for various emergency situations, including structure collapses. They’re using many of the same tools to locate and potentially rescue the missing construction worker inside the Hard Rock Hotel.
Officials with the rescue operation say drones have been instrumental in their efforts because the partial collapse essentially opened visibility at the site like a window. The drones are looking for human movement and analyzing the stability of the remaining structure of the building.
The task force is also using ground lasers in effort to see if the structure is listing. Thermal imaging cameras are being used to detect any signs of heat that could come from a person trapped in the rubble.
Three K-9s are being used for recovery efforts at this time, with more on the way Tuesday from Shreveport.
Friedrich Gurtler, an engineering consultant with Gurtler Bros. Consultants in New Orleans says structural analysis is very important to protect the lives of the rescue crew.
“This all has to be done very carefully, this is not the kind of thing where you go in and start taking things part,” said Friedrich Gurtler. “They have to stabilize portions of the structure as they remove portions of the structure, it's an incremental process.”
Rescue operations have been suspended when nighttime visibility due to safety concerns for both the crew and the missing construction worker. Officials with the rescue operations say if the crew isn’t able to see well they could lose their footing and cause a secondary collapse.
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