Vehicle and pedestrian traffic was halted temporarily on West Market Street on Tuesday morning as fire officials investigated a report of a building’s ceiling sagging under the weight of snow and ice.
Charlottesville Fire Department officials evacuated 206 W. Market St. at around 9:30 a.m. after one of the building’s occupants noticed the ceiling was drooping below its normal height.
The building’s occupants include a jewelry studio on the first floor and a yoga studio on the second level.
City building inspectors declared the building unsafe until a cracked roof support is fixed.
“We believe it was caused by the weight of the snow and water accumulation,” Fire Chief Charles Werner said. “The crack created a sag in the ceiling of 6 to 8 inches.”
Snow and ice accumulation from the recent storms led to the collapse of the roofs of 84 Lumber in Albemarle County and the gymnasium of Blacksburg High School.
The roof of Scottsville’s Volunteer Rescue Squad also began to sag after a recent snowstorm, but the National Guard and Albemarle firefighters cleared off the snow and a potential collapse was prevented.
Werner advised homeowners and business occupants to keep an eye out for any unusual roof sagging, but urged them not to climb on their building’s roof to clear off the snow.
As the weather grows warmer in the coming days, Werner added, another concern will be melting snow leaking into buildings. Leaks, he said, can degrade a building’s roof support structures.
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