Man falls through bathroom floor in ‘nuisance’ house in West Central neighborhood

As police arrived to drive out the occupants of a so-called “nuisance” house in Spokane’s West Central neighborhood, a man fell through the bathroom floor and had to be rescued from a crawl space, officials said.

The man, who was not identified, fell through the rotten floor of the duplex at 912 N. Chestnut St. and was found during a sweep of the residence Monday afternoon. Other occupants reportedly left the premises when police arrived earlier in the day.

Officials said the house had been declared a chronic nuisance on Friday because of drug activity.

David Heizer, a battalion chief with the Spokane Fire Department, said crews had to cut a larger hole in the floor so that the man could be hoisted up with ropes and a stretcher.

Heizer said the man was taken to a hospital. The extent of his injuries wasn’t immediately clear.

By about 5 p.m. most of the windows on the house had been boarded up.