1 killed, 5 hurt when unfinished Dallas town house collapses

DALLAS – A construction worker is dead and five co-workers are hospitalized with injuries after a three-story town house they were building in Dallas collapsed during a thunderstorm.

The collapse happened about 4 p.m. Monday about a mile (1.6 kilometres) west of the city’s downtown.

Dallas Fire-Rescue spokesman Jason Evans says 20 to 30 people were working in and around the wood-frame structure when it collapsed, trapping six workers.

One worker died at the scene, while five others were taken to hospitals. Evans says their injuries did not appear to be life-threatening.

The cause of the collapse remains under investigation. However, the National Weather Service reported wind gusts exceeding 60 mph (97 kph) and a rainfall rate of 4 inches (101 millimeters) per hour in the vicinity.