Several injured in deck collapse at N.C. beach-front home

WILMINGTON, N.C. — A residential deck on a North Carolina island collapsed on Saturday and at least 14 people were rushed to the hospital, with several listed in critical condition, officials said.

Raleigh-based television station WNCN, citing officials, said the collapse on Emerald Isle in Carteret County left more than 20 people hurt.

First reports from officials had slightly lower numbers of people who had been taken to a hospital from the accident scene.

Emerald Isle fire chief Bill Walker, who added that at least 14 people were transported from the scene to hospitals.

Three or four of the people hospitalized were in critical condition and some others may have had minor injuries, he said.

Carteret General Hospital received 18 patients from the collapse, and it transferred two patients in critical condition to other hospitals, said a nurse in charge at the facility.

The incident follows a deadly June 16 balcony collapse in Berkeley, California, that killed five visiting Irish college students and an American friend.