Bodies of 2 workers recovered at CHOP garage collapse site in Grays Ferry

The bodies of two workers killed in last week’s parking garage collapse in Grays Ferry have been found, city officials announced Monday.

Mayor Cherelle Parker said the two men, who were members of the city’s ironworkers union, were removed in the pre-dawn hours of Monday morning.

“They have recovered both individuals with the utmost dignity and compassion and respect for their families and loved ones,” Parker said.

Iron Workers Union Local 401 identified the two missing workers as Matthew Kane and Mark Scott Jr. A third worker, Stepan Shevchuk, was rescued from the debris shortly after the collapse and died at an area hospital.

The demolition work was completed at about 7 p.m. Sunday, and urban search and rescue crews from the fire department, who are especially trained for this type of search, used cadaver dogs to perform the somber job of locating the bodies.

Fire Commissioner Jeffrey Thompson said they knew approximately where the bodies were buried, in the collapsed stairwell.

“Once we got down to where we had a pretty good idea where the people were, and that was the stairwell. That was a unique architectural feature,” he said. “Once we got to the stairwell, we literally had our tech rescue folks get in there and use tools of various types to locate the people. We had to de-layer. We had to take it apart piece by piece.”

Thompson said crews had to use “shovels, buckets and our hands to get to the people.”

What happens now?

Now that the garage has been demolished and the bodies recovered, the investigations and cleanup will begin.

Mayor Parker signed an executive order to launch “a thorough and independent and transparent investigation into the circumstances that led to this tragedy so that all relevant facts established and accountability may follow where appropriate.”

Infrastructure work will need to be done before the area can be completely reopened.

“There are still hazards present,” said Dominick Mireles, who heads the city’s Office of Emergency Management. “We need to make sure to address those hazards.”

Mireles said the city hopes to reduce the footprint of the street closure, which has Greys Ferry Avenue closed from 27th to 33rd streets.

The closure also includes the only major grocery store in the area, which has meant hardship for local residents, many of whom walk to and from the store for food.

City officials held a food giveaway over the weekend, and more could be organized depending on the length of the shutdown.

Philadelphia City Council is also considering hearings on the collapse.