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Elgin ceiling collapse injures two, displaces 19 others

Two people were injured and 19 others were forced out of their homes after an apartment ceiling collapsed early Saturday in Elgin.

Elgin Battalion Fire Chief Terry Bruce said the department responded at 12:16 a.m. to the Blackhawk Apartments on the 900 block of Carriage Way. Crews found a ceiling in the main living area of a top-floor apartment had caved in, trapping seven people inside.

Firefighters forced open the door, which was blocked by drywall, insulation and other debris, and transported an injured child and adult to Sherman Hospital in Elgin in fair condition, Bruce said.

According to residents, contractors had been installing a new roof on the apartment building the last couple of days. They noticed some nails had popped up in the ceiling, Bruce said.

The other seven apartments on the top floor were checked and found to have multiple nail pops and sagging drywall, Bruce said. They were deemed unsafe, as well.

Most of the 21 displaced occupants went to stay with relatives, but the fire department provided two families with vouchers to the Marriott Hotel in West Dundee.

Building maintenance, property management personnel and a building contractor were called to the scene and advised of the situation, Bruce said. The Elgin Department of Code Enforcement was notified to follow-up.

The preliminary damage estimate to the building and contents is $7,500, Bruce said.

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