LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Several city agencies, including Louisville Metro Police and officials from the health department, conducted an emergency evacuation of a building in downtown Louisville on Friday.

The operation was wrapping up early Friday evening, after police removed several people holed up inside the 20-story building at 239 S. Fifth Street near W. Jefferson Street. 

Most of those inside had already gone by the time police arrived, but the city did help relocate five other people found inside. 

It was a chaotic scene, as crews in tactical gear and hazmat suits converged on the building around 9 a.m. July 12, after reports of safety issues because of the theft of copper wiring and other equipment. Police said the intruders also tampered with AT&T phone lines in the basement. 

Richard Price, director of the city's codes and regulations, said there had been reports of service disruptions because of that tampering.

"This building is interconnected with other existing businesses," Price said. "AT&T has had a problem keeping that internet service for some of these buildings. It's just been a big problem of keeping the building safe and secure."

People we spoke with weren't surprised, including Shawn Motley. "I was walking right down the street, and the guy walked right out the door with a wagon, full of copper," he said. 

James Murphy practices law in the building next door and said he caught one of the men he suspects living in the building using a ladder to try to break into his office.

"When he saw me, he ran into the building," Murphy said. "And when police came, they came into the building."

Although the entrances have been boarded up, Motley wonders what's next. "Just because they put the boards on the doors and windows and lock it up or whatever doesn't mean they won't get back in." 

The squatters left the building flooded in filth. There are several shattered windows on the upper floors of the building. The entire roof of the building is covered in graffiti. 

The Kentucky Life Building was built in 1912. It has remained vacant since it was purchased in 2021 by KHLB Properties. According to previous WDRB reporting, plans called for it to be "redeveloped into a Mixed-Use concept to include a hotel, urban loft apartments, and retail."

This story will be updated when more information becomes available. 

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