Snow blamed for roof collapse at Fort Wayne mall

FORT WAYNE, Ind. — Officials are blaming the weight of snow for causing a corridor roof to collapse at a Fort Wayne shopping mall.

The collapse that happened about 2 a.m. Tuesday at Glenbrook Square left debris and snow in a corridor near its Sears store and inside part of a restaurant.

Allen County building commissioner Dave Fuller tells WANE-TV it appears snow blew off the higher roof of the Sears store and accumulated on the lower roof over the corridor. Fuller says it could take significant time to make repairs.

A structural engineer deemed the rest of the mall safe and it was open Tuesday.

Structural Engineer Services owner Ken Hess tells The Journal Gazette that snow buildups can cause troubles at older buildings such as Glenbrook, which was built in the mid-1960s.