I would open my front door on a midnight errand to bring the trash out to the bin, and there it would be: an invisible, airborne toxic event. There is a smell that wafts over New Orleans now and then, an aroma that is distinctly toxic even if it is faint. But the ones that most unnerved me were the menaces unseen. The threats that get the most attention are the ones you can see: hurricanes, tornadoes, floods. To live there is to toggle between a necessary oblivion and being constantly alert to threat.

New Orleans is perched at the edge of the continent, at the mouth of a great river - “the colon of America,” remarked a friend who grew up here - and yet it is small enough in scale that you can almost see and hear the gears of its municipal life turning. It identified the contractor on the project as Citadel Builders LLC.Ĭitadel issued a statement expressing its condolences for the death and injuries but did not comment on a possible cause of the collapse.In an exclusive excerpt from the New Orleans issue of Stranger’s Guide, author Thomas Beller examines the 2019 collapse of the city’s Hard Rock Hotel, the subsequent cleanup, and the still-unanswered questions. The statement said the company had a licensing agreement with the building's owner, Kailas Companies, and Hard Rock had no involvement in the construction. Hard Rock International issued a statement expressing sympathy for victims and their families. Among area buildings evacuated was the Saenger Theatre, where travelling companies perform Broadway Shows regularly. Removal of the damaged crane and clean-up of massive piles of debris promised to be an enormous undertaking in the days ahead, expected to tie up traffic and commerce. She declined to give her name, wiping tears from her eyes as she walked away. A woman nearby said she was trying to find out the status of her brother, a worker at the site.

Canal, which carries six lanes of traffic divided by a wide median where streetcars roll, separates the Quarter from the city's main business district.Īs search and rescue efforts unfolded, police stood sentry around a group of people on the Canal Street median believed to be loved ones of the missing. The new Hard Rock Hotel was under construction at the corner of Rampart Street and Canal Street, a broad boulevard just outside the Quarter that is lined with restaurants hotels and retailers.

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