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'It was really bad.' 30 injured in Clemson clubhouse floor collapse

"It was packed," said one attendee. "That many people should not have been in there."

Clemson, SC — Thirty people were injured when the floor of a clubhouse collapsed during a party at an apartment complex, the Clemson City Police Department said.

Police received a call at 12:30 a.m. Sunday and responded to The Woodlands of Clemson on Old Greenville Highway. Officers arrived to find more than two dozen injuries, although no one was entrapped and none of the injuries were believed to be life-threatening, police said.

Credit: Mollie Simon, Anderson Independent Mail
On the scene of a floor collapse at a Clemson apartment complex.

Larissa Stone, a sophomore at Clemson, said she arrived to the party about 20 minutes before the floor collapsed. She said a song played that "a lot of people liked."

"So everyone was jumping. The beat was about to drop and literally the whole floor collapsed," she said. "It happened so quickly. I stood up, and everyone was trying to climb out. People are under other people. People are hurt. People are bleeding. I had blood on my sneakers. It was really bad."

Police said a group had leased the clubhouse for a private party.

Joe Galbraith, Clemson University's associate vice president for strategic communications, confirmed that the party was hosted by the Clemson Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity.

"It was packed," Stone said. "That many people should not have been in there."

Resident Victoria Stokes, who has lived at the apartment for about a year, described the chaotic scene after the collapse. Stokes said she saw some people being carried out of the building using lawn chairs.

Stokes wasn't at the party, but described the apartment complex as quiet. She said the party was loud, but didn't think anything of it because it was homecoming weekend.

The Woodlands of Clemson is a "townhome and garden style condominium community" according to its website. The complex, which is about three miles away from Clemson University, includes both students and non-students.

Tal Slann, president of Woodlands Management of Clemson, Inc., which manages about half of the apartments in the complex, sent an email to residents Sunday morning. The email said the clubhouse and pool area are off limits and the clubhouse would be inspected.

The Clubhouse and pool area is OFF LIMITS to all. The clubhouse will be inspected by structural engineers as soon as possible. From there, the homeowners association will determine how to rebuild the clubhouse to make it safe for all residents. Our thoughts and prayers are with all of those who were injured we and apologize for any inconvenience. Woodlands Management of Clemson, Inc will notify you as to our limited office hours and our off property temporary office address. We will continue to be available to all residents. Packages already received will be delivered to you at your unit, if you are not home we will place inside your condo door.

According to the "Community Rules and Regulations Addendum" posted on the complex's website, "Tenant does hereby indemnify Landlord and agent, and hold Landlord and Agent harmless against all claims for personal injury sustained by Tenant, Tenant’s family and guest in their use and enjoyment of the pool or other provided facilities within the Community."

The complex has both student and non-student residents. Slann explained that the complex is not corporate-owned, and the homeowner's association manages all of the shared spaces, including the clubhouse.

Clemson University officials were notified of the incident early Sunday morning and were still gathering information about what happened.

The injured people were transported to area hospitals by Clemson University EMS, Pickens County EMS and Med Shore Emergency Services. Clemson University Fire coordinated the efforts.

Check back for updates to this developing story. Jason Clary contributed to this article.

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