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Missing man's body recovered at Iowa apartment collapse site; two others still missing

DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) — The body of one of three men who had been missing after the partial collapse of an apartment building in Davenport, Iowa, has been found, a city official confirmed Sunday. Branden Colvin Sr.
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Children draw on the ground with chalk at the scene where an apartment building partially collapsed on Sunday afternoon, Tuesday, May 30, 2023, in Davenport, Iowa. A structural engineer report issued just days before the building partially collapsed indicated a wall of the century-old structure was in imminent risk of crumbling. But neither the owner nor city officials warned residents of the danger days before the building partially collapsed. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)

DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) — The body of one of three men who had been missing after the partial collapse of an apartment building in Davenport, Iowa, has been found, a city official confirmed Sunday.

Branden Colvin Sr.'s body was recovered Saturday, city spokeswoman Sarah Ott said. Two other men — 51-year-old Ryan Hitchcock and 60-year-old Daniel Prien — are still unaccounted for. Colvin, 42, is the first person confirmed to have died in the collapse.

No other details were immediately released.

The Quad-City Times reported that Colvin's son, Branden Colvin Jr., graduated from high school Saturday. He and other family members had been at the collapse site almost constantly, hoping for a miracle.

The discovery of Colvin's body came a day after authorities announced that the search for survivors had been completed, with attention turning to shoring up the structure so recovery efforts could begin.

The remains of the six-story apartment building were constantly in motion in the first 24 to 36 hours after it collapsed on May 28, which officials said posed a risk to rescuers who were trying to search for survivors.

City officials had said earlier that Colvin, Hitchcock and Prien had “high probability of being home at the time of the collapse.”

The Associated Press