Man Arrested After Being Rescued From Hurricane Sandy Rubble

A man was rescued from an abandoned building that collapsed during Hurricane Sandy, only to be arrested moments later for looting.

It remains unknown how the three-story building on Cumberland Street in Philadelphia fell; it is suspected that the 50mph winds took the property as they passed over the city.

As firefighters were securing the wreckage of the building, they heard someone trying to escape and pulled the man from the rubble; they previously believed the property to be unoccupied, the Daily Mail reported.

Once the man was safe, police arrested him on suspicion of looting, suspecting that he had entered the building in an attempt to steal things that may have been left behind.

It is also unknown why the man was in the building, but the East Coast has been preparing for the possibility of looting in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.

Thousands of National Guard troops (1,175) were mobilized to prevent looting sprees on homes and shops in New York and Long Island, according to the Daily Mail.

While several potential looters rallied on social media websites such as Twitter, threatening to invade whatever abandoned buildings they could find.

Garret Roetzer, @garretroetzer tweeted, “who wants to go looting with me when Sandy hits?! I need some new shit.”

Matt Worman, @Call_me_WORM tweeted, “Bout to do some looting when this hurricane finally hits... got get a new laptop and tv... this hurrricane might be the best thing to happen.”

Many mischief-makers began using Twitter after the 2011 London riots were organized via the website, and other mediums like Facebook or email. The Daily Mail notes that many in the U.S. have taken to organizing “flash robberies,” through Twitter,

Several businesses, including Saks Fifth Avenue in New York and Basile Pizza in Hoboken, NJ, boarded up their doors and windows, not only in preparation for Sandy, but also to prevent looters from breaking into their stores.