2018 Engineer’s Report Showed Major Structural Damage Before Condo Building Collapsed On June 24, 2021
Dear Friends & Neighbors,
(Please click on red links & note magenta)
For updated global info & data on COVID-19, please click HERE.
For updated global data & graphs on COVID-19, please click HERE.
For COVID-19 cases and death counts in USA by state, please click HERE.
For COVID-19 cases in Florida via Florida COVID Action, please click HERE.
For COVID-19 cases in Florida, via Florida state government, please click HERE.
Recall our previous post on June 24, 2021, regarding Surfside Condominium Building At North Of Miami Beach, Florida, Partially Collapsed, apparently three years before the collapse of Champlain Towers South complex (Surfside Condominium) north of Miami Beach, FL, a consultant, Frank Morabito, in 2018 found alarming evidence of “major structural damage” to the concrete slab below the pool deck and “abundant” cracking and crumbling of the columns, beams and walls of the parking garage under the building and urged the managers of the building to repair cracked columns and crumbling concrete, in italics, below.
“Though some of this damage is minor, most of the concrete deterioration needs to be repaired in a timely fashion,” the consultant, Frank Morabito, wrote about damage near the base of the structure as part of his October 2018 report on the 40-year-old building in Surfside, FL. He noted that the needed repairs would be aimed at “maintaining the structural integrity” of the building and its 136 units.
Documents released from 2018 show there were multiple major issues with Champlain Towers building in Miami, in the video published on June 26, 2021, “2018 engineering report showed ‘major structural damage’ before condo building collapsed“, below:
In the video published on June 26, 2021, “Engineer Warned of ‘Major Structural Damage’ at Florida Condo Complex“, below:
In the video published on June 26, 2021, “Rescue efforts continue as collapsed building’s past structural problems are revealed“, below:
In the video published on June 26, 2021, “Engineer found structural damage at collapsed Florida condo“, below:
Engineers are trying to determine what caused a condo building in Surfside, Florida, to collapse. Mark Strassmann has more, in the video published on June 24, 2021, “Investigators race to determine cause of Florida condo collapse“, below:
The engineer’s report was instrumental in a multimillion-dollar repair project that was soon to take place, more than two and half years after the building managers were warned. The building complex’s management association had disclosed some of the problems in the wake of the collapse, but it was not until city officials released the 2018 report late Friday, June 25, 2021, that the full nature of the concrete and rebar damage, resulting from years of exposure to the corrosive salt air along the South Florida coast, became apparent.
Eliana Salzhauer, a Surfside commissioner, said that while the cause of the collapse was unknown, it appeared to her that the problems identified by the engineer in the 2018 report could have contributed to the structural failure. Salzhauer said, “It’s upsetting to see these documents because the condo board was clearly made aware that there were issues. And it seems from the documents that the issues were not addressed. ”
Investigators are still awaiting for full access to a site where rescue crews have been urgently sifting through unstable piles of debris for possible survivors.
Lesson from the story: Pay close attention to your city or county engineers’ report or any inspection report and take actions on the recommended repairs in a timely fashion (meaning “soon”) in order to prevent future disasters.
Gathered, written, and posted by Windermere Sun-Susan Sun Nunamaker
More about the community at www.WindermereSun.com
We Need Fair Value of Solar
~Let’s Help One Another~
Please also get into the habit of checking at these sites below for more on solar energy topics:
www.kiva.org/team/sunisthefuture
