Abstract: On August 31, 2005, Employee #1 was working as a manager or administrator at the Northwest Medical Center. The canopy over the emergency room ambulance bay had been damaged on the south side entrance about three months prior. An engineer had been hired to make an assessment of the canopy prior to any demolition and renovation of the damaged areas. The engineer had instructed that only the damaged area of the canopy fascia be removed by a contractor in order that the extent of the damage be assessed. Employee #1 was under the canopy, when an approximately 33 foot by 33 foot hanging ceiling in the canopy fell on her. She sustained fractures to several parts of her body, and she was hospitalized. The hanging ceiling apparently underwent a sudden progressive failure before any assessment of its stability or structural integrity could be made.