George Floyd's Toledo mural crumbles, cause remains disputed as artists vow to resurrect

George Floyd’s mural in Toledo crumbled on Tuesday, July 13. The piece honouring the man whose death triggered a fresh wave of the 'Black Lives Matter movement', on the side of the former mugshots Bar at the corner of Summit and Lagrange streets reportedly, collapsed at 5:17 PM on Tuesday (local time). The building inspector reportedly said it was “just age. It just came away” as they had noticed the painted wall bowing recently. As per The Blade, Toledo report, the city building inspector Hugh Koogan said the toppling of the mural appeared to be a result of natural deterioration. 

Koogan reportedly also noted that the middle of the wall, where the most damage is concentrated, was bowing. He added, “It happens to the older buildings." Further disputing the cause of the Floyd mural crashing down, the Toledo Fire and Rescue Department listed the reason as a lightning strike. The Department’s spokesperson Sterling Rahe reportedly cited the witness reports and the scene. The witness told the authorities that they saw a lightning strike at the building at the site of the collapse.

However, the media publication quoted Koogan saying that he found no signs to support the lightning strike theory. The building inspector also rejected the claims that the rainy weather reduced the wall to the ground. Additionally, the artist who created the mural, David Ross reportedly said that he is sceptical of the cause. He titled the mural ‘Take a Breath’ as he created the piece in the summer of 2020 amid Black Lives Matter demonstrations rocking the United States following his death under the knee of now-jailed former police officer Derek Chauvin. 

Artist recalls receiving threats over mural

As per the report, Ross recalled receiving threats as well as criticism at the time the mural was painted. This further made him wonder after the wall collapsed if it was actually vandalised. The media publication quoted Ross saying, “When I did the mural, there was stuff on the wall that I couldn't remove and that let me know how strong that structure was...The lightning thing, that's possible, but I know it didn't just fall.” He is now planning to resurrect the mural at a fresh location. He said, “I’m going to do it again” irrespective of the causes that toppled ‘Take a Breath.’

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