The Muhlenberg Township Amazon warehouse whose roof sagged under the weight of snow has been cleared to reopen, the township’s director of engineering said Thursday.
“Operations are acceptable to resume,” said Steven J. Dunkle, also the township code enforcement officer.
Dunkle was not certain when Amazon would resume operations in the 906,000-square-foot fulfillment center at 1002 Patriot Parkway.
The decision lies with the building’s owner, Matrix 1002 Patriot LP, and Amazon. Neither have indicated when operations will resume.
Township officials approved the reopening after reviewing an engineer’s structural analysis of the Amazon warehouse, which was evacuated Wednesday because the roof was sagging under the weight of tons of snow.
As an extra precaution, he said, Amazon is having some of the snow removed from the roof.
Muhlenberg Fire & Rescue was dispatched shortly after 10 a.m. Wednesday to the facility in the Riverview Park section.
Dunkle said Amazon safety officials noticed the roof bowing and called for the fire department.
There were signs of structural stress, he said, but not to the point where the roof was in imminent danger of collapse.
Out of concern for the safety of the workforce, the township required a suspension of operations and completion of the structural analysis before operations can resume.
The location received about 18 inches of snow from the nor’easter that crawled through the region early this week.
Amazon opened this Reading-area fulfillment center in the former East Penn Manufacturing distribution center in September.
Dunkle told the Reading Eagle in August that Amazon had recently contacted township officials after determining the facility would meet its needs for a second fulfillment center in Berks County. The company needed to do some interior changes to the building, which was constructed in 2004, for its operation.
Goods are stored and shipped from the center.
Earlier in August Amazon announced plans to build a 1 milllion-square-foot facility next to the Shartlesville exit of Interstate 78 and employ about 1,000. That facility opened in November.
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