The collapse

Part of the old Italian Barracks in Chania, Crete, collapsed around midday on Thursday, 15 October 2026, after heavy rain in recent days weakened the structure. The building once housed the former War Museum and had suffered extensive damage in a fire in 2018 before being left largely abandoned.

The fire service was first told that people might be trapped inside. Firefighters and rescuers swept the site with geophones and drones, and a team of the Emergency Management Team (EMAK) with two trained search dogs arrived from Heraklion.

Search and clearance

After several hours, the EMAK team concluded that there were no trapped people or victims under the debris. Ten firefighters with two vehicles from the 1st Chania Fire Station were deployed at the site, and the fire service said a person had been believed to be inside at the time of the collapse. Reports from the scene, citing local residents, said homeless people had sometimes used the empty building as a temporary shelter, which had fuelled the concern.

The municipality of Chania sent construction machinery to help remove the debris from the fallen section. Removal of the collapsed material was still under way in the afternoon.

Open questions

The causes of the collapse had not been established at the time of reporting. Authorities were expected to issue an update on the progress of the operation and the condition of the remaining structure.

The incident has renewed attention on the safety of old buildings that stand unused but remain accessible. Earlier reports said the site had been considered for reuse as the city's new town hall, a plan that Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis referred to during a visit to Chania.