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In Tamworth, New Hampshire, a wedding celebration turned alarming when a floor gave way at a local venue, resulting in six individuals being transported to nearby hospitals with injuries that were not life-threatening. The incident occurred at approximately 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, according to a representative from the State Fire Marshal’s Office.
The structural failure took place amidst a gathering of around 140 wedding attendees, as detailed in a joint statement by the Tamworth Fire/Rescue Department and the Fire Marshal’s Office. Thankfully, no deaths were reported, and by late Saturday, four of the hospitalized individuals had already been discharged.
Efforts to reach the venue, the Preserve at Chocorua, were unsuccessful as phone calls went unanswered. Situated in Tamworth, a community of roughly 2,800 residents located about 115 miles (185 kilometers) north of Concord, New Hampshire, and not far from Maine’s western border, the area faced communication challenges. Attempts to contact MaineHealth Memorial Hospital on Saturday evening also yielded no response.
According to the Fire Marshal’s Office, over 100 guests were in the Sap House building when a sudden collapse created a 20-by-20-foot gap, plunging approximately 70 people into the basement. The chaos left several individuals trapped under fallen beams and farm equipment stored below.
Before emergency personnel arrived, fellow guests and staff members sprang into action, using ladders to help those who had fallen climb out of the basement and providing first aid for minor injuries. The exact number of individuals treated at the scene remains unclear as investigators continue to assess the situation.
A photo from the Fire Marshal’s Office shows a chandelier and white bunting decorating the ceiling above the buckled floor boards, as well as stacked benches that had been used for seating for the wedding before the collapse.
The Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating the collapse along with the Tamworth Fire/Rescue Department, a spokesperson said Saturday. Investigators believe the building “was over capacity” prior to the floor collapse, a spokesperson said in a release.
A first responder who arrived on scene shortly after 911 calls came in described half the floor of the building where the wedding ceremony was set to take place as having fallen into the basement over scanner traffic listened to on Broadcastify. He asked for more first responders to talk to witnesses, saying there were about 145 people present at the event. The responder also said they were carefully pulling people out of the building basement.