Tragic Urban Exploration
Teenage boy dies after falling from stairwell during urban exploration in abandoned New Orleans high-rise.
A 17-year-old boy from Belle Chasse, Louisiana, died early Saturday after falling down an open stairwell inside the long-abandoned Plaza Tower in downtown New Orleans, according to WDSU News. Police say the teen was part of a group of underage kids who broke into the 45-story skyscraper — empty since 2002 — for what authorities described as "a little urban exploring."
NOPD Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick confirmed that at least some members of the group were drinking alcohol before the break-in. A 911 call came in at 12:04 a.m. from the building's owners, according to WWL-TV. Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Michael Harrison, the city's former police chief, called it a "truly tragic incident."
Inside a Toxic 45-Story Building Left to Rot
The Plaza Tower at 1001 Howard Avenue has been vacant for more than two decades. The building was fully shut down in 2002 after tenants discovered severe toxic black mold and asbestos throughout the structure, according to WWL-TV. It stands 531 feet tall and is the third-tallest building in New Orleans. No one is supposed to be inside.
First responders had to enter the unstable, pitch-black high-rise to reach the teenagers and recover the victim's body, according to WDSU News. Kirkpatrick praised the officers publicly: "Thank you to the brave men and women who went in even though this building has been abandoned for many years and is declared unsafe." She added, "Every single one of those kids is traumatized right now."
This Is Not the First Death Inside Plaza Tower
The Belle Chasse teen is not the first person to die inside the tower. In April 2023, another man fell to his death from an upper floor — less than 24 hours after firefighters battled a two-alarm blaze in the building's parking structure, according to WWL-TV. The tower has drawn urban explorers and copper thieves for years.
The building's former owner, developer Joe Jaeger, once said of trespassers: "You can't police it." Jaeger died in a car crash in June 2024. Managing member Randy Waesche has said the ownership group welded doors shut and installed protective netting, according to WDSU News. Still, determined trespassers keep finding ways in.
City Has Fined Owners Millions, Yet Building Still Stands
New Orleans designated Plaza Tower as one of its "Dirty Dozen" worst blighted properties in late 2023. The city levied fines of $220,210 per day against the owners for code violations and placed a $184,445 lien on the property to recoup street barricade costs, according to WWL-TV. A city inspector general report in August 2023 found that code enforcement failed to fine the owners from 2015 to 2021.
Full demolition would cost an estimated $27 million — largely because asbestos must be removed floor-by-floor before any structural work can begin. A competing proposal, a $250 million plan to convert the tower into 300 senior housing units, was presented to the City Council in March 2026, according to WDSU News. That deal's future is now in serious doubt following Saturday's death.
Residents Demand Action as Political Pressure Mounts
Locals have long been furious about the tower. Commenters on WWL-TV's social media placed blame squarely on city officials: "That death is on City Council who allow that building to stand all this time." Mayor Helena Moreno, who took office promising to tackle blight, now faces intense pressure to force a fast resolution on the tower.
The ownership group has fought the city's demolition orders in federal court. Legal experts say this second high-profile death gives the city strong new grounds to prove the property is a public danger. The teen's death has been classified as "unclassified" pending an autopsy by the Orleans Parish Coroner's Office, according to WDSU News.
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