ROCKLAND, Mass. (MyFoxBoston.com/AP) - A section of roof at a Massachusetts music store that's home to a rhinestone-covered grand piano once owned by Liberace collapsed under the weight of snow Tuesday, but thankfully the area of the building that housed the piano did not cave in. Rob Norris said after an inspection Tuesday the piano did not suffer a scratch. The Liberace piano has 88,888 rhinestones and has been appraised for $500,000.
Rockland Fire Chief Scott Duffey says a roughly 100-foot-by-100-foot section of the pitched roof fell into the showroom Tuesday morning at the Piano Mill. No one was inside. Duffey said more sections fell later.
Duffey says about a dozen other pianos had extensive damage.
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No one was allowed inside until a structural engineer assessed damage. You can see a FOX 25 archive feature on the piano at the top of this article.
The collapse was reported at about 6:30 a.m., though Duffey says neighbors reported hearing a crash at about 1:30 a.m.
Rockland received 29 inches of snow Monday.
Norris says the Liberace piano has 88,888 rhinestones and has been appraised for $500,000. Liberace's famous bejeweled concert piano spent some time in New York City in recent years. It was used by HBO as a promotional tool for the movie âBehind the Candelabraâ starring Michael Douglas, Matt Damon and Rob Lowe.
The roof at an indoor training facility in Auburn also gave way overnight under the weight of the snow. Officials say no one was hurt in the collapse.
Cox Media Group
