A graduation party at the Portuguese American Citizens Club in Rhode Island ended in tragedy after the building partially collapsed on Saturday, June 7
A 15-year-old girl died and three other people were hospitalized with significant injuries, according to multiple news outlets
“Words, neither written nor spoken, can express the sorrow with which we are all stricken,” the club said in a statement following the incident
A 15-year-old girl reportedly died and three other people were injured after a building partially collapsed during a graduation party in Portsmouth, R.I., over the weekend.
Around 5:34 p.m. local time on Saturday, June 7, police and firefighters received multiple reports of people trapped under a concrete stairwell that had detached from the Portuguese American Citizens Club on Power Street, according to local stations WBTS and WHDH.
“There were 75 people inside the building at the time, and it appears several were on the landing when it collapsed,” CBS News reported, citing the Portsmouth assistant fire chief, Howie Tighe.
In addition to the teen girl’s death, two 17-year-old girls and a 49-year-old woman were rushed to Rhode Island Hospital with significant injuries, according to the outlet.
“The immediate rescue of two of the injured parties was pretty quick,” Tighe told CBS News. “They weren’t necessarily trapped in a real complicated manner.”
“Then there were the two that were significantly trapped, and obviously one of them took upwards of 45 to 50 minutes because of the amount of cribbing we had to do, trying to lift the concrete wall up because she was trapped underneath it,” he said.
“Our hearts are with the Portuguese community and all those impacted. I’m deeply grateful to the first responders and praying for everyone’s safety,” Gov. Dan McKee said in a post on X.
The Portsmouth Portuguese American Citizens Club shared their sympathy in a post on Facebook.
“It is with heavy hearts and great sadness that we acknowledge this unthinkable tragedy that has befallen our community,” the club’s statement read. “The Portsmouth Portuguese American Citizens Club has always taken pride in providing a venue at which our community can congregate and celebrate.
“Words, neither written or spoken, can express the sorrow with which we are all stricken,” the statement continued. “Our thoughts and prayers are with all involved and affected. This tragedy has shaken us all to our core.
They concluded: “We would like to express a debt of gratitude to our first responders and law enforcement in the town of Portsmouth and neighboring communities.”
Portsmouth police and the fire department did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for further comment on Monday, June 9.