Dec 5, 2007 9:49 pm US/Central
Man Who Fell 6 Stories, Died At IDS Identified
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) ―
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The man was clearing snow off the glass roof of the Crystal Court -- a food court and retail shops -- shortly before 2 p.m. when he crashed through it and into the atrium below.
CBS
A man clearing snow and ice off the glass roof of the IDS Center skyscraper's atrium slipped, crashed through the roof, and fell three stories to his death on Wednesday, police and building management officials said.
He was identified as Fidel Danilo Sanchez-Flores, 52, of West St. Paul. No one else in the atrium was hurt.
"This is clearly an accident," said Minneapolis police Sgt. Jesse Garcia.
Sanchez-Flores was clearing snow off the roof of the Crystal Court -- which contains a food court and retail shops -- shortly before 2 p.m. when he fell through the ceiling, Garcia said.
"We believe he had his full body harness on," said Jim Durda, vice president and general manager at Inland American Office Management, the Chicago-based manager of the IDS Center. However, he added, the incident was still being investigated.
The Hennepin County medical examiner's office said an autopsy was planned for Thursday on Sanchez-Flores, who was employed by Columbia Building Services Inc., based in Minneapolis. A message left with company officials was not immediately returned.
Durda said the IDS Center has been using Columbia Building Services for 35 years and that cleaning snow off the glass roof is quite common. He said this was the first time an accident like this has happened.
The death is at least the third in downtown Minneapolis in the past two years involving workers falling several stories. In November 2006, a 45-year-old ironworker fell about 35 stories and died while dismantling a crane on a condominium complex. In September 2005, a 36-year-old worker fell at least four floors down an open shaft at the same complex and was killed.
The 51-story IDS Center overlooks the Crystal Court, which features a 105-foot ceiling-to-floor water fountain and a canopy of glass skylights. The building's Web site says the skylights are 121 feet above ground.
Garcia said police cordoned off the lower part of the Crystal Court and cleared the skyways entering into the IDS Center on Wednesday afternoon.
"We don't have to make this a public viewing," he said. Authorities covered the body with a white cloth. Durda said the Crystal Court was closed for the rest of the night.
The IDS Center has been the site of two suicides in the last 11 years. In 2001, a 30-year-old man jumped from the 51st floor, crashed through the Crystal Court, and landed by a fountain near a restaurant. In 1996, a 32-year-old man knocked out a window in the 30th floor of the IDS Center and jumped headfirst to his death.
The landmark, built in 1972, overlooks the Nicollet Mall, downtown's major shopping area. Scenes from the Crystal Court were featured in the opening segment of TV's original "Mary Tyler Moore Show."
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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