Another Part of Zlín's Burnt-Out Skyscraper Collapses During Demolition

In Zlín on Saturday, the central section of a fire-damaged high-rise — once a shoe warehouse — collapsed during planned demolition work. No one was injured, and neither neighbouring buildings nor demolition equipment were damaged.

According to Marcel Schmidt, a representative of Cream Group, engineers had been aware of the risk that the middle section of the structure could give way, since the building's static stability had been most compromised in its western part. "We had cut through about twenty percent of the structure's body, and after that the static strength gave out — the whole section collapsed," he said. Falling debris did not reach either the surrounding buildings or the demolition machinery.

Dismantling a giant warehouse

Building 34 once served as the central warehouse of the shoe giant Svit and, after its closure, passed — along with other structures in the complex — to the Cream company. It housed storage space and offices for several Czech firms, including the footwear company Vaška, sportswear maker Alpine Pro, the Packeta Group's delivery service Zásilkovna, and Equator Cycling, a bicycle manufacturer and repair shop.

After Saturday's collapse, only the eastern — and oldest — section remains of the eleven-storey building, which was constructed in three stages around the turn of the 1940s and 1950s. The demolition is being carried out by Build Synergy, which, under the terms of the handover, must dismantle the main structure within 25 working days. The work is being done using a hundred-tonne excavator fitted with a 42-metre hydraulic boom, which is gradually "shearing off" the floors from top to bottom; the structure is being sprayed with water from a tanker to keep dust down.

On Friday evening, demolition had to be paused briefly due to a minor hydraulic fault in the main machinery — according to the Czech News Agency (ČTK), it was a routine technical issue. Work resumed by Saturday morning. Dozens of locals have been gathering daily to watch the demolition — some observing from behind the fence, others climbing up to the viewing terrace on the 16th floor of the neighbouring Baťa skyscraper.

The fire and the investigation

The fire broke out on the morning of Thursday, 9 July, apparently starting in Vaška's shoe storage on the ninth floor, from where it spread to the upper floors and the roof. Firefighters battled the blaze for nearly two weeks, declaring it fully extinguished on 22 July. The site was handed over to Cream on 27 July — four days after the building authority ordered the immediate demolition of the damaged structure.

Under the order, the owner is required to fully clear the building, including all debris, by 15 December, while authorities have given a six-week deadline for demolishing the parts deemed most dangerous to life and health. Following two localized collapses, roughly half of the building already remains standing.

The cause of the fire, in which no one was hurt, is being investigated by forensic experts together with fire service investigators — police say the inquiry could take several months. The case is being treated as possible negligent endangerment of public safety, an offence punishable by up to five years in prison. The exact extent of the damage has yet to be determined.

Read also: Prague's Best Viewpoints: Top 12 Views for 2026

Around Prague, based on reporting by novinky.cz