Dog found alive in rubble two days after collapse
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — Five-year-old Nathaniel Peterson eagerly watched his first search-and-rescue mission Sunday afternoon as firefighters recovered a third dog trapped in rubble for over 48 hours after a building that collapsed in downtown Sioux Falls.
Molly the beagle is one of three dogs belonging to the family who lived in the building. All three were recovered from the wreckage.
"I was so happy (they found the dog)," Peterson said. "I clapped and cheered."
Crews had been inspecting the structural integrity of the Copper Lounge building since 1 p.m. Sunday when Emergency Manager Regan Smith and a city engineer both heard a light bark just after 2 p.m.
"'Did you hear that?' I asked (the engineer)," Smith said.
Search-and rescue-crews were called and the family was notified of the search, Smith said. They were there to recover the dog.
Smith said the dog was found under a mattress, likely near where they found 22-year-old Emily Fodness, a woman who was home at the time of the collapse and trapped in the wreckage for over three hours Friday.
The dog's condition was said to be good, according to a Sioux Falls Police Department tweet. The dog, a beagle, was taken away by animal control. The dog was the third belonging to the family that to be found alive. The first was found three hours after the collapse and the second later Friday night.
A construction worker was killed after the building collapsed during remodeling in downtown Sioux Falls on Friday morning.
Ethan McMahon's body was recovered shortly before 6 p.m. Friday. He was working alongside his brother John McMahon in the building when it collapsed. John made it out in time.
Ethan McMahon was remembered by friends as a father, a Marine veteran and a deeply caring friend.
Contributing: Megan Raposa, (Sioux Falls, S.D.) Argus Leader. Follow Danielle Ferguson on Twitter: @DaniFergs