On 29 March 2013, a wall collapsed onto the footpath on a site on the edge of Melbourne's central business district. Pedestrians in the vicinity were crushed or hit by falling debris. Immediately after the incident, members of the public rushed to the aid of those under the fallen bricks, trying to remove the debris until emergency services arrived.
Two people died; another was critically injured and later died.
The cause of the collapse was subject to a number of investigations, and it is understood that that unusually strong winds contributed to the accident.
Two companies - Grocon (Victoria St) Pty Ltd and Aussie Signs Pty Ltd - were separately convicted and fined for their roles in the wall collapse:
- Grocon (Victoria St) Pty Ltd was convicted in the Magistrates Court in November 2014 and fined $250,000 for failing to ensure that a workplace it managed or controlled was, so far as was reasonably practicable, safe and without risks to health
- Aussie Signs Pty Ltd was convicted in the County Court in February 2016 and fined $250,000 for failing to ensure, as far as was reasonably practicable, people other than its employees were not exposed to risks to their health and safety as a result of its work.