'We Are Going To Be Careful, We Are Looking At Codes': Miami Beach Officials On High Alert In Wake Of Surfside Condo Collapse
MIAMI BEACH (CBSMiami) – Following the tragic collapse of the South Champlain Towers in Surfside, South Florida officials remain on high alert. Residents who live in high rises are now also questioning if their own buildings are structurally safe.
"We had 507 buildings in just our city that were commercial residential that fit into the category of the 40 year recertification. We went through all of them within a week. We started Friday morning after Champlain Tower fell and we got through all of them by the end of the week. The result is that none of them had any structural issues. We also have required all of those buildings to get a licensed professional within 21 days to issue a report on both the electrical and the structural issues because we want to make sure that anyone that's behind is caught us, and we want to know if there's something there," said Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber.
Since Miami Beach launched a thorough review of all condo high rises buildings, one three-story building in the 1600 block of Lenox Avenue was evacuated on July 3.
Miami Beach Fire Rescue responded to a service call at around 7 p.m.
After a building inspector looked at the unit, he than flagged a flooring system failure in the apartment with excessive damage on an exterior wall.
Tanbeer Mahmood, who lives on the second floor, said he dealt with water damage, cracks, and a floor that is slightly tilted. However, he said the apartment underneath him was in worse condition.
"The floors are sinking and the beams that are underneath the building are rusted," said Mahmood.
The Crestview towers in North Miami Beach is another building that is still closed off.
On Friday, July 2, the structure was deemed unsafe. The building is almost 50 years old.
Although the cause of the Surfside condo collapse has still not been determined, Mayor Gelber said, "We are going to make sure that what has been a once in a lifetime incident has not got any implications system wide. We are going to be careful. We are looking at codes. We are going to do everything we can to do an informed review. We are going to wait to see what the experts say the cause of this horrific incident really was because that will help inform what we do as well."
