A colorful and striking mural of George Floyd painted on a brick wall in Toledo, Ohio was destroyed and crumbled to pieces. Witnesses say it collapsed after a lightning strike. WTVG-TV News station’s Doppler radar showed a lightning strike around 4:30 p.m. Tuesday in the block where the mural was located.

The mural was painted on a brick building that used to house the Mugshots Bar. There are conflicting reports as to what caused the collapse. Hugh Koogan, a city building inspector told the Toledo Blade the collapse occurred because of natural deterioration. He says he recently noticed the middle of the wall was bowing. “It was just age. It just came away” said Koogan.

According to a City of Toledo building inspector, the building itself is structurally sound. The owner is reportedly working on cleaning up the bricks and tearing down the remaining wall which held the mural.

Toledo Police were promptly seen setting up tape around the mural which had become a pile of bricks. The mural was painted almost exactly a year ago in July 2020. The City of Toledo has said they were heartbroken to see the mural, done by artist David Ross, collapse.

The City has released a statement saying they will work with the arts commission on planning for a new mural, or to help the commission and the artist find a new location to recreate what has been used as a memorial site for the late George Floyd who was killed in Minneapolis by officer Derek Chauvin who was sentenced to 22.5 years in prison.

The Blaze compiled some reactions from social media users:

Commenters had a bit of a field day reacting to a WTVG investigative reporter’s tweet about the mural’s demise:
•   “And they say God isn’t real,” one commenter wrote.
•   “I’m not a religious person whatsoever, but if there was ever an event that caused me to pause, this would be it,” another user said. “Wow…”
•   “Warning — be on the lookout for liberal logic on this: Lightning struck the mural; There is more lightning because of climate change; Republicans don’t believe in climate change; Republicans are all white racists; White racists, therefore, destroyed the mural,” another commenter quipped.
•   “Now BLM gonna say that lighting strikes are racist, and they should check their privileges,” another user observed.
•   “Was wondering why we wanted a mural of a criminal anyway,” another commenter noted. “Of course it’s awful he’s dead, but that doesn’t mean we should celebrate a guy who held a knife to a pregnant woman’s belly.”