Thirty people were injured when the floor of a clubhouse collapsed during a party in an apartment complex, announced the Clemson City Police Department.

Police received a call Sunday at 12:30 pm and responded to The Woodlands of Clemson on Old Greenville Highway. The police arrived to find more than two dozen wounded, although no one was trapped and none of them would threaten life, the police said.

Larissa Stone, a sophomore in Clemson, said she arrived at the party about 20 minutes before the ground collapsed. She said a song played that "a lot of people liked it."

"So everyone was jumping in. The pace was about to fall and all the ground had collapsed," she said. "It happened so fast, I got up and everyone was trying to get out, people are under the others, people are hurt, people are bleeding, I had blood on my sneakers. It was really terrible. "

Police said that a group had rented the clubhouse for a private party.

Joe Galbraith, Associate Vice President of Strategic Communications at Clemson University, confirmed that the party was organized by the Clemson Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity.

"It was packed," Stone says. "That many people should not have been there."

Resident Victoria Stokes, who has lived in the apartment for about a year, described the chaotic scene that followed the collapse. Stokes said he saw people being taken out of the building with lawn chairs.

Stokes was not at the party, but called the apartment complex calm. She said the party was noisy, but did not think about it because it was the weekend back home.

The Woodlands of Clemson is a "community of condominium-style townhouses and gardens," according to its website. The complex, which is approximately three miles from Clemson University, includes both students and non-students.

Tal Slann, president of Woodlands Management of Clemson, Inc., who manages about half of the resort's apartments, e-mailed residents Sunday morning. The e-mail indicated that the club and the pool were prohibited and that the clubhouse would be inspected.

The clubhouse and the pool are off LMITS for all. The clubhouse will be inspected by structural engineers as soon as possible. From there, the owners' association will determine how to rebuild the clubhouse to make it safe for all residents. Our thoughts and prayers are with those who have been hurt and we apologize for any inconvenience. Woodlands Management of Clemson, Inc. will inform you of our limited office hours and our temporary off-property office address. We will continue to be available to all residents. Packages already received will be delivered to your unit. If you are not at home, we will place them inside the door of your condo.

According to the "Addendum to Community rules and regulations" posted on the "The tenant indemnifies the landlord and his agent, and exempts the landlord and his agent from any claim for personal injury that the tenant, the tenant's family and his guest will have to use and enjoy the pool or other facilities put to them. in the Community. "

The complex includes student and non-student residents. Slann explained that the complex does not belong to a company and that the owners' association manages all the shared spaces, including the clubhouse.

Clemson University officials were informed of the incident early Sunday morning and were still gathering information about what had happened.

The wounded were transported to hospitals in the area by the emergency medical services of Clemson University, Pickens County and Med Shore. Clemson University Fire coordinated the efforts.

Check back for updates to this developing story. Jason Clary contributed to this article.

Read or share this story: https://www.independentmail.com/story/news/2018/10/21/30-injured-clemson-apartment-clubhouse-floor-collapse/1719446002/