posted 02-10-2010 10:23 AM               

Roof collapse at Smithsonian facility

A warehouse that is part of the Smithsonian Museum Support Center at 3904 Old Silver Hill Road in Suitland has suffered a roof collapse, said Mark Brady, a spokesman for the Prince George's County Fire and Emergency Services.

"This large warehouse facility is the Smithsonian's primary off-site storage facility. It stores artifacts," he said.

The building that sustained damage is warehouse No. 21 at the Garber Facility.

"It is unknown what, if any, artifacts are affected by this roof collapse," Brady said.

posted 02-10-2010 10:34 AM               

Emergency officials have told museum staff it's too dangerous to go in and check on the artifacts because the building is unstable.

Credit: Smithsonian

[Smithsonian spokeswoman Linda] St. Thomas said the facility includes buildings from the 1950s that were slated for demolition in the coming years. She said items stored at the building are not of high value, though it wasn't clear what collections were inside.