HOUSTON -- City inspectors worked Thursday to decide if a southwest Houston apartment building where a stairwell collapsed, killing two boys and injuring a third, can remain standing, KPRC Local 2 reported.

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Slideshow: 2 Children Die In Collapse
Video: Could Stairwell Collapse Been Prevented?:
Amy Davis Reports

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Houston police said three boys were playing hide-and-seek in a maintenance stairwell at the Westwood Fountains Apartments, 9430 Concourse Drive near Lansdale Drive, when the staircase, balcony and wall collapsed at about 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.

David Vazquez, 10, and Miguel Angel Robledo, 4, were crushed to death, officials said. Jose Martine Castro, 10, suffered a broken leg and back.

Witnesses said some children were also playing at the top of the staircase when it fell.

Residents said they could hear the children screaming and tried to pull debris off of them, but the combination of brick, steel and mortar was too heavy to lift.

Vasquez's mother said she was getting out of the shower when she learned her son was crushed under the rubble.

Elvira Vasquez said her daughter told her, "Don't get scared, but get dressed fast because a building fell on top of David."

"Right there and then, I felt that my son had died," Elvira Vasquez said in Spanish. "I feel like it's the manager's fault because if they would have maintained the buildings, my son would be alive."

Castro's father said he worries that his son will never walk again.

Some residents said they were worried that something like this would happen. They said the staircase was rusted, unlocked and did not look safe.

"They didn't lock it down," resident Veronica Bonilla said. "They didn't see how the kids were getting up there. All they did was tell the parents they didn't care, basically."

"The maintenance guy, they know it's too loose," resident Victor De La Torre said. "They don't put any sign, no nothing like that."

Investigators said three of the walls of the apartment building are leaning and are unstable. Residents evacuated until city engineers access the building and determine if it is safe.

"That building over there has a ramp around it and that's to hold the building up," resident Beatrice White said. "If it's leaning, take care of it. Eventually it's going to come down."

Houston Fire Department officials said there is a possibility that the building could be torn down.

"We will not know anything until the structure is studied and until the city engineers feel it's safe for the investigation to continue," Assistant Chief Omero Longoria said.

Residents said they wonder if another stairwell will fall.

"My kids play around here," De La Torre said. "We never know if another stairwell will collapse again."

Houston City Councilman M.J. Khan asked for a full investigation.

"Yes, we are responsible for the inspections, but the apartment also has to always make sure they are safe to play and live in," Khan said.

If inspectors find any violations at the apartments, the complex could face fines between $200 and $200,000 and be required to fix them within 30 days.

A fund has been set up at Washington Mutual Bank for Vazquez's family. Donations can be made at any branch.