On Tuesday, May 20, emergency services were called to Lazarská Street in the center of Prague after parts of a historic building’s cornice began to crumble.

According to fire department spokesman Miroslav Řežáč, only small fragments fell to the ground, but firefighters were able to safely remove a large, unstable piece that was at risk of breaking off.

No one was injured. The alert came from Czech police, who spotted the danger.

“We’re removing loose fragments and checking the structural condition of the building to prevent larger parts from falling,” Řežáč said.

What makes this incident particularly alarming is that it’s the same building where a piece of the cornice collapsed last summer, tragically killing a Ukrainian doctor.

The earlier tragedy occurred on August 8, 2024, when a 45-year-old Ukrainian father of three was on his way to a business meeting. Caught in a downpour, he took cover at a tram stop in front of the building.

Without warning, a heavy section of the building’s façade detached—likely due to strong winds and heavy rain—and crashed through the tram shelter, fatally striking him in the head.

Following the fatal accident, police launched an investigation under the charge of “causing death by negligence.”

The building is owned by the insurance company Pojišťovna VZP. After last year’s tragedy, company representatives stated that the structure was in good technical condition, and that its façade had recently been renovated. As of Tuesday, the company has not issued a statement regarding the latest incident.

Last autumn, Pojišťovna VZP paid several million crowns in voluntary compensation to the family of the deceased Ukrainian doctor. However, the main compensation case is still unresolved.

City officials and investigators are expected to re-examine the building’s structural integrity in the coming days.

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