With winds whipping at speeds up to 55 mph in parts of Massachusetts on Friday, four stories of scaffolding from a Boston building collapsed, landing on multiple vehicles.
The incident was reported around 11 a.m. at the corner of Beacon and Exeter streets, according to the Boston Fire Department.
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Fire officials said no one was hurt, but two vehicles were covered with "significant debris."
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There did not appear to be significant damage to the building the scaffolding surrounds, fire officials said. Four people inside the building and a neighboring building were evacuated as a precaution.
The roads were closed for some time while crews work to remove the damaged scaffolding. One section initially fell on the Beacon Street side, and a section on Exeter Street is now unstable.
At approximately 11:00 companies are working at the corner of Beacon and Exeter st for 4stories of scaffolding that collapsed in the street on some vechicles pic.twitter.com/YmOP462bn0
— Boston Fire Dept. (@BostonFire) March 7, 2025
The scaffolding was due to come down next week — the work it was being used for was finished on Wednesday, city building inspector Brian Ronan told reporters. It was too windy for a crane to come help clean up, and a plan was still being worked out for how to clear out the debris.
Wind is the suspected cause, Ronan said, though that was being discussed.
"That could have been horrible," he said of the collapse. "Pedestrian traffic on a school day? I shudder at the thought."
OSHA would be investigating what happened, which Ronan called "a perfect example of why construction contractors should be aware of the weather reports for their site's safety."
