Shelving collapses at Party City in Palm Beach County

3 treated for minor injuries

PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. – Three people were treated for injuries after shelving inside a Party City near Boca Raton collapsed Tuesday morning.

The shelving collapse was reported about 10 a.m. at the Party City on Powerline Road.

Palm Beach County Fire Rescue posted pictures of the rescue on its Twitter page. The pictures showed rescuers rummaging through the collapsed shelving in search of possible victims.

Capt. Albert Borroto said seven shelves collapsed onto each other. Borroto said all employees and vendors were accounted for, but rescuers searched the debris to make sure that nobody was trapped underneath the fallen shelving.

"The biggest concern was life safety, that there was somebody trapped under that rubble," Borroto said.

Employees from other stores attempted to help before authorities arrived.

"All the shelves were down, starting from the wall all the way down to the middle of the store from the wall," Susan Seiter, who works next door, told Local 10 News. "It looked like all rubble."

Three people were treated for minor injuries.

It was not immediately known what caused the shelving to collapse like dominoes.

"The safety of our customers and employees is our number one priority, and Party City is committed to providing a safe, happy environment," the company said in a statement. "The cause of this situation is under review as a similar incident has never occurred in our 800-store system. The Boca Raton location remains closed at this time."