SURFSIDE – The portion
of the building that turned into a compact mountain of
pancaked concrete Thursday in Miami-Dade County’s town of
Surfside was part of a three-tower development that remained
under scrutiny on Tuesday. Some residents decided to
evacuate.
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More than 150 people
remained unaccounted for after the tragedy at Champlain
Towers South. For days, Robert Lisman, a resident of
Champlain Towers East, has been raising awareness about
damaged concrete and rust.
Champlain Towers East was built in 1994. Like the South
tower, Champlain Towers North was built in 1981. Residents
have asked officials to inspect the safety of their
buildings. Residents from the North tower said they are not
as afraid because their association has maintained the
building. The
condo association boards from both the East and North towers
sent memos to residents when panic ensued after the
collapse. |
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They informed
residents they didn’t have any major structural concerns,
and they were bringing in Allyn Kilsheimer, the president of
KCE Structural Engineers based out of Washington, D.C. The
firm will be tasked with fixing any exposures or cracks.
As the world wondered how this could be possible in Florida,
where hurricanes have forced officials to increase
structural standards, a troublesome 2018 report surfaced. It
shows engineers had reported there was major structural
damage at Champlain Towers South.
The deadline for property owners to start paying assessments
into $15 million in projects was coming up this year.
Officials said the building was in the process of
recertification, which is required every 40 years and
involves scrutinizing every part of the residential
property. Gov. Ron DeSantis said it’s going to take time to
find out with certainty what exactly caused the tragedy.
An army of rescuers wearing hard hats has been working day
and night and they have been facing sporadic rain and
spontaneous fires. The delicate operation included
highly-trained dogs, drones, robots, and experts from as far
as Israel, Mexico, and Argentina.
