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Washington Co. Razing Partially Collapsed Building As Rescued Woman Remains Hospitalized

WASHINGTON, Pa. (KDKA/AP) - A woman who was trapped for more than nine hours when her dilapidated apartment building in Washington County partially collapsed is recovering after surgery.

Matthew Angelone says his 38-year-old sister, Megan Angelone, was taken to UPMC Presbyterian Hospital after crews pulled her from the building that collapsed early Wednesday on North Main Street in Washington.

Megan's mother tells KDKA that her daughter had surgery on her legs Wednesday night and now has big incisions on her calves and thighs.

The refrigerator that saved Megan's life was sitting on top of her from her hips down.

She says if Megan hadn't gotten to the hospital and had the surgery when she did, she wouldn't have been able to walk. The refrigerator saved her, but was sitting on top of her from her hips down.

Megan's clavicle is also broken, and she may need another surgery for that. Megan's mother says her daughter's breathing tube was removed Thursday and she is conscious, alert and talking a little.

Her mother says Megan is small but strong.

"I'm Grateful for all the people who were there to help her," Megan's brother Matthew Angelone said.

Megan's boyfriend Nathan Engott was discharged from Presby Thursday ans has been by Megan's side ever since.

woman-rescue
(Source: PEMA Photographer Mike Haritan)

Megan had just moved into her fourth floor apartment about two weeks ago.

Matthew said he's grateful for all the people who helped his sister during the collapse, but devastated because she lost everything.

Megan's boyfriend Nathan Engott was also in the building when it collapsed, he was discharged from Presby Thursday and has been by Megan's side ever since.

Megan has two children that weren't at home when the building collapsed.

The family is planning on opening an account at the bank to raise money on Megan's behalf.

City officials got an emergency court order to raze the building Thursday.

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City code inspectors in March cited building owner and contractor Mark Russo for a crack in the building's wall. But Russo says that was repaired and that he can't explain why the building collapsed.

"We did take this property owner to court and were not aware of how severe the instability of the structure was at the time of our last court hearing," Washington Director of Public Safety Monda Williams said.

Washington code enforcement officer Ron McIntyre says a citation was issued for the property in March.

"We went to a hearing on May 25 and he was given more time to correct the issues at his property," McIntyre said.

McIntyre says the issues were never corrected.

"We are scheduled in court on Tuesday and had this unfortunate event not happened, Tuesday he most likely would have been found guilty and we would have shut that building down," Williams said.

Washington Mayor Scott Putnam says the building should have been condemned.

As for the barbershop that sits on the ground-level of the building, the owner and his employees are stuck as they wait for word on when the building will come down.

"I have money that's in there. I have all my barber equipment that's in there, hundreds of dollars of barber equipment that I can't get to, and it's my livelihood," said R.J. Embaugh, an employee at Hair We Go.

Barbershop owner Steven Layton says he was in the process of moving locations after falling bricks last month prompted him to worry about structural safety.

"I really feel bad for the people that got displaced, don't nobody deserve that, all it would've taken was some maintenance and care of this building and this could've been avoided," Layton said.

Layton says he doesn't know when the building will come down, just that the likelihood of him salvaging anything is slim to none.

"I don't think we're gonna be able to go in at all, because yesterday it was said that no one is gonna re-enter this building," he said.

Two other residents were injured and treated Wednesday. Officials say as many as five other people were left homeless in the collapse.

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(© Copyright 2017 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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