Charles H. Crawford, 52, labor foreman, rescued Henry F. Strozier, 31, laborer, and David Maxwell, 33, cement finisher, following the collapse of a ceiling, and died attempting to rescue others, Atlanta, Georgia, August 28, 1959. Strozier, Maxwell, and two other workmen were smoothing freshly poured concrete for a ceiling above the lobby area of a building under construction when the supports gave way and a 15-foot section fell 21 feet to the floor. The four men fell with the debris and were buried in a tangled mass of steel, timber, and concrete which formed a pile 10 feet high and 20 feet in diameter. Crawford and a number of other workmen were attracted and began removing the debris by hand. Crawford first uncovered Strozier, who climbed from the pile unaided, and then removed debris covering Maxwell. He pulled Maxwell free and helped him 30 feet away from the pile. Learning that other men had fallen with Maxwell, Crawford immediately returned to the debris pile. Although the other two men by then had escaped, Crawford and the rest of the workmen thought additional persons still were buried in the pile and continued removing the debris. Hearing a loud report overhead, Crawford yelled a warning for the men to run to safety. As the workmen fled, additional supports gave way and nearly all of the remaining portion of the newly poured concrete section collapsed. Approximately 40 tons of material fell to the floor in a pile 40 feet in diameter. Most of the men who had been working with Crawford escaped, but 11 were caught near the edges of the second fall, with one of them suffering severe injuries. Crawford was completely buried beneath the heaviest concentration of debris. Firemen were summoned and aided in uncovering Crawford, who had been crushed to death. The other men recovered from their injuries. 44854-4303
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