NEW ORLEANS — The Hard Rock Hotel collapse site will remain on the corner of Rampart and Canal streets for several more months, city officials said in a Thursday update on the demolition effort.
This change could have a serious impact on at least one of the most prolific Krewes taking part in Carnival season.
The partially-constructed hotel collapsed Oct. 12, killing three construction workers and forcing widespread evacuations to heavily-trafficked areas.
New Orleans Fire Department Chief Tim McConnell said the demolition plan is "very close to being finalized" on the two-month anniversary of the collapse.
Engineers believe another collapse is possible. That danger is slowing efforts to recover the bodies of two workers killed in the initial collapse, because the bodies are believed to be on the upper floors of the structure, which are the most unstable.
A recovery effort could destabilize the upper floors and put any involved crews in danger.
"If you go in there and start picking through debris ... and cause further collapse, you put the rescuers in danger," McConnell said.
Authorities believe they can shore up parts of the building using supports, and plan to begin working on that effort as early as next week.
The supports, which were described as Department of Homeland Security Director Collin Arnold as being similar to car jacks, would go up floor by floor.
That process is estimated to take up to two months. After that, Arnold said, crews should be able to recover the two bodies.
The building's owner, 1031 Canal Development LLC, decided against imploding the building with explosives and are instead planning to demolish the building using traditional methods.
The new timeline will likely impact Mardi Gras parades. City officials have not given a concrete plan for the parades, but say they will have that plan finalized soon.
This carnival, the Endymion Krewe, which usually parades down Canal Street, is already making an unrelated change to its parade route -- ending at the Convention Center instead of the traditional Superdome.
But they're preparing for additional changes caused by the Hard Rock cleanup effort.
"As of now, we're being told that we will be able to go down Canal Street, but we have an alternative plan," said Dan Kelly, one of the Krewe's organizers.
"I want to be clear: Carnival will not complicate our efforts," McConnell said. "The efforts are on the recovery, of stabilizing this building, making it safe, and the recovery of the victims. that will take precedence over Carnival."
Meanwhile, businesses around the collapse site are beginning to reopen. The Saenger Theater reopened Wednesday across the street from the Hard Rock Hotel in the latest example, but demolition plans could complicate that.
McConnell warned during the news conference that the city could push the fence around the site back as they get closer to demolition. It was unclear Thursday how far out the fence could extend and what impact that would have on nearby businesses.
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