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A wood and stucco railing facade on a mixed-use building fell Friday morning because it could not hold the increased weight of water from the rain. Photos by Dennis Dean.

collapse3Four families and four businesses were displaced after a wood and stucco railing facade on a mixed-use building collapsed Friday morning, authorities said.

Long Beach Fire Department (LBFD) personnel responded to the scene at 3122 Los Coyotes Diagonal at about 7:30AM to find that the underside of the railing and stucco siding of the facade had collapsed, said LBFD spokesman Jake Heflin.

The facade separated the two levels of the building, which holds four apartments and four businesses, he explained. It appeared the biggest factor of the collapse was the facade could not hold the increased weight of water from the rain.

Access to the apartments was limited because the building was deemed not structurally stable, and it was red tagged by the Long Beach Building and Safety Department.

Residents will not be able to live there and businesses cannot re-open until the building is deemed safe, Heflin said.

Red Cross is en route to the scene to assist one family with lodging. The other three families were able to find alternate lodging, Heflin said.

No further information is available. We will update this story as we learn more.

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