Roof of Plum warehouse caves in, briefly trapping worker

Mark Reid visited his Plum landscaping warehouse on Saturday and was pleased to see it had withstood the snowstorms of the past week.

His relief was premature: The roof of the pole building in the 2000 block of Logans Ferry Road collapsed Sunday morning, briefly trapping an employee inside.

Ray Brenner, Logans Ferry Heights volunteer fire chief, said the man was able to escape unharmed just as rescuers arrived about 11 a.m.

"He's very lucky," Brenner said. The man's name was not released.

Reid said the employee, who stayed overnight at the warehouse to watch over the collector's cars and other equipment stored inside, was feeding cats when he heard the roof start to creak.

"He ran to a trailer we keep in the back and laid on the floor," Reid said. The construction trailer served as an office and was stored inside the warehouse.

The roof of the large warehouse collapsed under the weight of the more than 30 inches of snow that fell in the past week. The walls remain, although some were leaning away from the building.

Brenner said the trapped man called 911 from inside the trailer, then slowly made his way through an open space under the collapsed roof and got out through a door.

Reid and Brenner said several cats were unaccounted for.

Plum police said the building will be condemned today after it is inspected by borough engineer Robert Mitall.

Reid said the building was insured. Aside from the cars, which he assumed were damaged, he said tools were stored inside.

The surrounding land, located in the borough's Logans Ferry Heights section, is used by landscapers as a dump site, Reid said. He also collects scrap metal there.

"I hadn't been here for a while and visited the building on Saturday," Reid said. "I said, 'At least the roof held up.' I guess I spoke too soon."