Kennedy Center closes after ceiling piece falls: ‘President Trump has been right’

A portion of the ceiling inside the Kennedy Center’s Grand Foyer collapsed Friday evening as heavy rain swept through the Washington, D.C. area, prompting officials to temporarily close the main building.

No one was injured in the collapse, according to the Kennedy Center, which released photos from the scene showing chunks of the ceiling and dust scattered across the foyer’s red carpet.

The Grand Foyer, a sprawling hallway connecting the Opera House, Concert Hall and Eisenhower Theater, will remain restricted to visitors and nonessential personnel through the week, according to internal communications obtained by ABC News. The rest of the main building is expected to reopen Saturday.

Kennedy Center spokesperson Roma Daravi pointed to the collapse as evidence of the need for extensive renovations at the performing arts complex in a statement to ABC.

She said the ceiling failure “stems from decades of neglect and deferred maintenance by the previous leadership.”

The incident comes as the Kennedy Center is at the center of an ongoing legal fight over its Trump-appointed board’s plans for the building.

The board has approved closing the center for roughly two years for a sweeping renovation. Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), an ex-officio member of the board, has challenged the closure plan in federal court.

The dispute also involves efforts to recognize President Trump on the building. The board has sought to add language to the facade crediting Trump with the center’s renovation, a move Beatty is also challenging in court.

The Justice Department has argued that extensive work is necessary to address the building’s condition, citing problems with water damage and rusting steel.

The administration threatened to demolish the building if a judge were to block the center’s closure for repairs, and has repeatedly referred to the center as being in a “decrepit” condition in court filings.