Texas parking garage collapse: Police search multistorey carpark in Irving for victims

Firefighters fear a secondary collapse, but say the structure looks stable for now

Footage showed cars on top of each other (CBS 11)

At least 21 cars have been damaged after the second-floor of a multistory car park collapsed in Texas.

Firefighters are currently going vehicle to vehicle to check for potential victims trapped in their cars after the incident in Irving.

The Irving Fire Department tweeted that 21 vehicles were involved in the collapse. A primary search of the garage had been completed and no injuries were reported. Rescue crews were planning a secondary search.

“It's a bit of a challenge,” Assistant Fire Chief J Taylor told KXAS-TV. “A secondary collapse is always our biggest fear. It looks to be stable, but we don't know that. Any rocking that occurred in that collapse will need to be evaluated.”

The cause of the collapse has not been determined.

“The way that it sounded, it sounded like someone dropped a dumpster trash can from a few stories up,” said witness Michael Clifton, whose office looks onto the scene.

“It was kind of gut-wrenching more than anything else. We were hoping we didn’t find anyone inside the cars,” Mr Clifton told a local CBS television station. “It was very eerie. You could smell gasoline and rubber.”