No injuries were reported after a large section of bricks fell from the top of the east wall of the historic Weinberg Arcade building in downtown Galesburg Saturday morning.
The incident happened around 8 a.m. at Prairie and Simmons streets. Bricks were scattered on the sidewalk and near 76 South Prairie Street. Glass windows were broken at Edward Jones Financial Advisor at 76 S. Prairie and nearby Shannon Albritton stylist and Soul Fuel Aesthetics, all ground-floor occupants of the multi-tenant business building.
Jay Bullis with Weinberg Arcade LLC, who was on scene observing the damage, told WGIL, “The bricks just pulled away from the main building.”
Bullis said the building will turn 100 years old next year. A brick mason is coming to secure the damaged area, and an engineer will inspect the building.
Galesburg Fire Chief Randy Hovind said about an 8-by-20-foot section of brick facade fell from the top on the east side, damaging ground-level storefronts and spilling into Prairie Street. The sidewalk and street are blocked off as more bricks look likely to detach. City building inspector and Community Development Director Steve Gugliotta are also assessing the situation.
Gugliotta tells WGIL an engineer is expected to further assess the damage Monday,
Hovind received notification of the incident at 8:12 a.m.
