Spokeswoman: Damage To Indy Skyscraper Limited To Outer Walls

INDIANAPOLIS -- The 36-story One Indiana Square tower downtown is structurally sound despite storm damage to its outer walls, a spokeswoman for the building's owners said Tuesday, attempting to quash rumors that the skyscraper might have to be torn down.

Spokeswoman Myra Borshoff said engineers had inspected the building, but she did not identify them.

"At this point, we believe that the damage is limited to the curtain wall, which surrounds the building," Borshoff said at a news conference.

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Video: Spokeswoman: Damage To Indy Skyscraper Limited To Outer Walls
Slideshows: 4/2/06 Storm Photos | 3/31/06 Storm Photos | Aerial Pics

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Dozens of the building's windows were blown out during a storm Sunday night, prompting officials to close the structure indefinitely. About 1,000 people were being kept away from their offices there, and city officials kept surrounding streets closed as beams, broken glass and other debris dangled hundreds of feet overhead.

The National Weather Service said winds of 100 mph or more hit the city Sunday night. The storm damaged about 30 homes and business sites in Marion County, the city said.

Officials said they didn’t yet have a timetable for repairs to the tower. Starting Wednesday, forensic engineers were expected to give advice on how to proceed, 6News' Norman Cox reported.

A Purdue University associate professor of construction technology told 6News that he believed that the storm probably didn't cause serious structural damage. He said a building's curtain wall, whose function is to hang exterior metal and windows, can generally be repaired.

Across Indiana, storms on Sunday destroyed one business, damaged 49 business sites, destroyed 19 homes and damaged more than 400 homes, according to the state Department of Homeland Security.

The National Weather Service said tornadoes touched down Sunday in Mitchell in Lawrence County, Seymour in Jackson County and southeast of Romney in Tippecanoe County. No major injuries were reported.

Displaced Tenants Scramble To Keep Businesses Operating

Tenants of One Indiana Square have been trying to determine how to operate their businesses while the building is closed.

On Tuesday morning, attorneys at Wallack, Somers and Haas moved computers and other gear from their offices in the damaged building. They said they were given a limited time to retrieve the things they needed to conduct their business at a temporary office.

"For attorneys, we bill hourly -- that's how we work. For every hour we're not working, we're losing money, so it's cheaper to go rent a second space than it is to stop working," attorney Jenny Shoup said.

Attorney Kip Tew, who also works in the building, was luckier. Information systems at his law firm, Kreig DeVault, can be operated remotely, so Tew was taking care of clients from his home on Tuesday.

"The server was up 4 o'clock yesterday -- I was getting e-mails again. So, we were out less than 24 hours," Tew said.

Attorney Sanders Hillis said his firm hadn't yet been allowed to send anyone into the building to retrieve computers or paperwork.

"We're working as best we can, but without our files and things, we are definitely hamstrung," Hillis said.