Crime & Safety
Crews Tearing Down Vacant E2 Nightclub After Chicago Officials Deem Building An "Imminent Danger To The Public"
The E2 nightclub was the place where 21 people were killed and 50 others were injured in a stampede for the exits in 2003.
December 18, 2024
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The South Loop building that once housed a nightclub at the center of one of Chicago's deadliest tragedies was torn down on Tuesday after city building inspectors determined the long-vacant site was too dangerous to leave standing.
Find out what's happening in Chicagofor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The E2 nightclub was the place where 21 people were killed and 50 others were injured in a stampede for the exits in 2003 after a security guard sprayed pepper spray to break up a fight – causing panic in the crowded club. The crowd rushed to the front exit, but because the doors opened inwards, patrons couldn't get out because of the weight of the crowd pressing out against the doors.
Last week, the Chicago Department of Buildings issued an order that the two-story building that once housed the E2 nightclub at 2347 S. Michigan Ave. should be "immediately demolished on an EMERGENCY BASIS," because it "constitutes an actual and imminent danger to the public."
