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Building Collapse Forces Evacuation of D.C. Strip Club

Four building collapses forced the evacuation of a strip club in Washington D.C., Friday.
NBC4 Washington

Four buildings partially collapsed in northwest D.C. Friday afternoon, forcing a strip club's evacuation.

D.C. Fire and EMS responded to the 400 block of K Street NW around 3 p.m. The site of the collapse includes The Cloakroom, which bills itself as an adult entertainment establishment.

After the initial collapse, witness told News4 they saw people jumping out of second floor windows.

"[We were] just dancing, doing our routine ... and the wall collapsed in on the kitchen and the bathroom ... some of the girls were shaken up," Olivia, a dancer at The Cloakroom, told News4.

NBC4 Washington

The damage was limited to the inside of the buildings, but shortly after 4 p.m., the third floor of the club collapsed. A wall of bricks scattered onto the sidewalk, where entertainers had been evacuated moments before.

Police say one person was transported to a local hospital with minor injuries. Some of the buildings appeared to be under construction, reported News4's Pat Collins.

The club opened at noon Friday, and had eight dancers scheduled to perform a noon through 7 p.m. shift.

An Advisory Neighborhood Committee representative for the block told News4 there had been complaints about blight and disrepair of the brick building attached to The Cloakroom, filed by residents of the city.

News4 I-Team has learned the city issued The Cloakroom's building's owners an "alterations permit" in November 2012, which included structural work. City inspectors are investigating the scope of those renovations.

--NBC Washington