Cordons around damaged Molesworth Street building
An office building at 61 Molesworth Street has been severely structurally compromised and now presents a risk of collapse.
To ensure people’s safety, the area around the building has been closed to pedestrians and traffic. Cordons have been set up by the Fire Service and Wellington City Council.
Mayor Justin Lester says the Council is taking a ‘safety first’ approach and asks people to stay away from the area.
“We are asking people to respect the cordon and stay away from the area.
“The building is severely compromised. We want people to be safe and we need the area to remain empty of people so our emergency response teams can focus on the priority work in front of them.”
Molesworth Street, between Hill Street and Hawkestone Street, will remain cordoned off until further notice and at least until after a second inspection is undertaken tomorrow.
Adjacent buildings are also closed and people working in those buildings should contact their employer for further information about returning to work.
Affected buildings adjacent to 61 Molesworth Street include:
- Embassy of Thailand
- New Zealand Rugby headquarters
- Two shops - The Mews and a sushi store
- National Library
- Red Cross offices
- Wellington Cathedral of St Paul
- A number of private houses accessed off Collina Terrace have also been evacuated.
General information:
For people who live in Wellington City, the Wellington Civil Defence Emergency Map has critical emergency information specific to your suburb.
For further updates follow us on Facebook or Twitter or refer to Wellington Region Emergency Management (WREMO).