Brick facade collapses, kills worker, injures 2 others employed by unlicensed contractor in Chicago

One worker is dead and two others were injured in Chicago last week when the brick facade of a building they were working on collapsed.

According to a report from the Chicago Sun-Times, the workers “were making changes to the building’s facade” when it suddenly collapsed on top of them.

A 44-year-old worker and a 30-year-old worker were taken to the hospital in serious condition. The paper reports the older worker later died. Another 44-year-old worker was admitted to a separate hospital in fair-to-serious condition.

It’s unclear why the facade collapsed, but a Chicago Department of Buildings spokeswoman told the paper that the work was being done by an unlicensed contractor without the proper permits.

The spokeswoman said the department expects that it will issue the owner of the building several violations once its investigation is complete.