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TROY — Structural engineer Philip Miller took a ride aboard a Troy Fire Department aerial truck Wednesday morning to survey the damage.

"It's stable for now. But if it gets windy or we get more snow I can't tell you what might happen," Miller said.

Miller was inspecting the roof of a three-story building at 11 E. Main St., which collapsed Tuesday under the weight of the heavy snow. Emergency crews blocked off a two-block area of downtown Troy in case the structure totally collapsed.

Miller, an engineer for Performance Concrete, said the flat roof collapsed and the beams holding the roof also were holding together the two side walls.

"My main concern is the front wall (facing Main Street) and the side wall (Walnut Street). They could come down," he said.

Officials are concerned because the building shares a common wall with an adjoining buildiung which also shares a wall with another adjoining building.

Miller said it appears that if a wall came down it would likely only collapse to the second floor. It appears the third floor can bear the load of the roof.

Bob Schaeffer, property manager for Harbor Trust, of Cincinnati, which owns six downtown buildings, said he is getting in touch with the trust officials to see what can be done.

"In the past they've always done what is right," he said.

The incident is affecting many businesses including K's Restaurant, because downtown steets are closed.

Jim Dando, of the city's economic development department said because of the weather, the impact would probably be minimal, except for establishments such as K's.

"Safety is our main concern," Dando said. "How hard this hits us depends on how long we have to keep the street (East Main Street) closed."

There are a total of four businesses in the three buildings, including Amish Furniture and Gifts, All About Scrapbooks and a few apartments.

Schaeffer and a city water department employee entered the building at around 10:45 a.m. to get to the basement to attempt to shut off the water to keep pipes from freezing.

The owner of Sound City Studios entered his buisiness at the same time and brought out several rare guitars.

Matt Stump said, "If I worked for a business I'd have been watching this on TV. Instead I'm risking my life to get my merchandise out."

Stump and Tim Hutchinson were moving guitars and banjoes. Hutchinson, owner of Lone Wolf Gifts, said he is leaving his merchandise in his shop.

"I'm just going to take it day by day," he said. "As long as the building stays up I guess I'm okay."

Contact this reporter at (937) 335-3838 or dpage@DaytonDailyNews.com.