Man Living in the Ceiling of the Yard House Downtown Becomes Trapped in Wall

Apparently someone took the word "house" in the name of downtown beer bar Yard House a little too literally. As 9 News reported yesterday, a man who had been living in the ceiling above the 16th Street Mall restaurant had to be rescued after he became stuck in a wall...

By Mark Antonation

December 11, 2014

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Apparently someone took the word "house" in the name of downtown beer bar Yard House a little too literally. As 9 News reported yesterday, a man who had been living in the ceiling above the 16th Street Mall restaurant had to be rescued after he became stuck in a wall. The Yard House closed early Tuesday night because rescue teams had to cut a whole in the wall near the entrance of the joint; the man had tripped a water main while clambering around in the rafters, causing flooding in the restaurant as well as in the neighboring Sheraton Hotel.

Hunter Robinson, communications manager for the Yard House, a California-based operation started by former Denverite Steele Platt, did not have information about the condition of the man, who was taken to a nearby hospital. "We are fully cooperating with local authorities," he adds, "but we don't have any information right now."

Robinson says the Yard House was forced to close early to deal to deal with the situation and evacuate customers due to the flooding. "Our first concern was for everyone's safety," he notes. Police and fire crews initially arrived around 11 p.m., but did not find the intruder until nearly 2:30 a.m., when they heard him moaning from behind the wall. Robinson adds that the restaurant was back open for business at its usual time yesterday after bringing in a crew Wednesday morning to clean up the flooding.

It looks like there's a vacancy now for anyone looking for living space in a vibrant downtown location.

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Mark Antonation is the former Westword Food & Drink Editor. In 2018, he was named Outstanding Media Professional by the Colorado Restaurant Association; he's now with the Colorado Restaurant Foundation.

Contact: Mark Antonation

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