Falling Shelves Injure 8 at Bronx Dollar Store

The fire department says eight people were injured, seven seriously, when packed shelving units collapsed at a Bronx dollar store.

The incident happened around 3:45 p.m. Monday at Discount Outlet on Morris Avenue in the Melrose section.

Fire officials say the collapsing shelves created a cascading effect, burying people under piles of merchandise. Responding firefighters had to remove the goods by hand and cart them onto the sidewalk.

A fire department spokesman says there was no structural damage to the building.

He says none of the injuries, which included broken bones, are life threatening. All were taken to Lincoln Hospital in stable condition.

“All the shelves just started falling over,” witness Norma Villafane, 59, told the New York Post.

“I was walking toward the back and all I heard was this thunderous loud noise,” she added. “I turned and shelves fell onto one gentleman.”

More than 60 firefighters responded to the scene. The fire department says the cause of the shelving collapse is under investigation.