Search and Rescue teams look for possible survivors and to recover remains on Tuesday June 29, 2021 at the site of the 12-story oceanfront Champlain Towers South Condo, at 8777 Collins Ave., that partially collapsed around 2 a.m. on Thursday, June 24, 2021 in Surfside, Fl. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel)
A condo official told residents of an “accelerating” concrete failure about two months before the historic collapse of the Surfside building, in the newest revelation as rescuers spend a sixth day searching for possible survivors.
There are 150 missing and 11 dead in the count released by authorities as of Tuesday morning.
USA Today was first to report an April 9 letter sent from the president of the Champlain Towers South Condominium Association, citing how damage to the building’s basement garage had “gotten significantly worse” since an inspection about two and a half years earlier.
Over seven pages, Jean Wodnicki outlined major repairs required for the building, which were first brought to light in a 2018 inspection by Morabito Consultants. That review found a “major error” in the design of the building, crumbling concrete columns in the garage area beneath the structure, and predicted that failure to fix the problems in the “near future will cause the extent of the concrete deterioration to expand exponentially.”
The recent letter revealed by USA Today also noted the building’s roof had become “much worse” and required additional repairs, with total price tag for the work soaring from about $9.1 million in 2018 to $16.2 million this year.
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Meanwhile, assigning blame for the disaster is the focus of government investigations, civil lawsuits and, in the coming months, a criminal grand jury.
The Miami Herald reported that State Attorney Katherine Fernández Rundle said she will ask a grand jury to examine the condo collapse, and related public safety issues.
“I am going to urge them to take a look at it,” she said, adding: “Whether they do or not, it’s completely their decision.”
Search and Rescue teams look for possible survivors and to recover remains and evidence on Tuesday at the site of the 12-story oceanfront Champlain Towers South on Collins Avenue in Surfside, which partially collapsed about 2 a.m. on June 24, 2021. (Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Grand juries sometimes look at broader issues of public safety, with sub-par building codes coming into focus after Hurricane Andrew hit the region in 1992. A grand jury can also bring forward criminal charges. The State Attorney’s Office is still reviewing the case of the deadly 2018 collapse of a pedestrian bridge at Florida International University.
Reports continued to emerge Monday about warnings of structural failures and defects in the 12-story building before it suddenly fell early Thursday morning.
A commercial pool contractor who visited the building last Tuesday, only days before it collapsed, told the Miami Herald that he thought there was nothing unusual at the condo — until he saw the basement-level garage.
The man, who asked not to be named, was preparing a bid for pool work to be included in the multimillion-dollar restoration project that just was getting underway. He was troubled by what he saw and photographed in the basement-level parking garage — cracking concrete and severely corroded rebar under the pool.
“There was standing water all over the parking garage,” the contractor told the Herald.
A building staff member who showed him around the area told the contractor that it was likely waterproofing issues, but the contractor told the Herald, “I thought to myself, that’s not normal.”
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The contractor noted that he was told that pumps could not keep up with standing water in the Champlain Towers South.
There have been no sight or sounds of survivors since the hours immediately following the destruction. Officials say they are not giving up hope, though sonar and other technology has not picked up any calls for help.
“The search and rescue operation continues,” Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said again on Monday. “These numbers are very fluid and this will continue to change.”
Still, relatives of people missing from the building were increasingly beginning to realize that prayers might not be answered.
“Families are coming to their own conclusions,” the mayor said. “Some are feeling more hopeful, some are less hopeful because we do not have definitive answers.”
Deciding to transition from search-and-rescue work to a recovery operation is agonizing, Dr. Joseph A. Barbera, a professor at George Washington University, told The Associated Press. That decision is fraught with considerations, he said, that only those on the ground can make.
Barbera coauthored a study examining disasters where some people survived under rubble for prolonged periods of time. He has also advised teams on where to look for potential survivors and when to conclude “that the probability of continued survival is very, very small.”
“It’s an incredibly difficult decision, and I’ve never had to make that decision,” Barbera told the AP.
Across the street from the wreckage on Monday, many onlookers stopped at a small memorial to reflect, pray and leave items like rosaries and bouquets of flowers. One sign hung on the fence reads, “Venezolanos desaparecidos” or “disappeared Venezuelans,” alongside photos of the four people missing from that country.
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Authorities said it was unclear when they would stop rescue efforts they say are unprecedented for an emergency in the state aside from a hurricane response.
“We’re just not there yet,” said Miami-Dade Fire-Rescue Chief Alan Cominsky of efforts that continued through intermittent rain showers.
The bodies that search-and-rescue crews found were scattered throughout the debris, Cominsky said Monday night. They are continuing to look for any spaces where larger pockets in the pile might be.
Biden to visit Surfside
President Joe Biden told White House reporters on Tuesday that he would likely visit the building collapse as early as Thursday.
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On Monday, his administration said it supports a full examination of what caused the Surfside tragedy that includes the deployment of experts from multiple federal agencies including emergency managers and the FBI.
“Certainly, we want to play any constructive role we can play with federal resources in getting to the bottom of it and preventing it from happening in the future,” Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters at a White House briefing.
U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Weston, whose district includes Surfside, said the investigations would likely lead to changes in federal law to protect the integrity of condo buildings up and down the coast.
“How are we going to deal with the long-term implications of this?” she said, joining Gov. Ron DeSantis and other officials at a news conference near the site of the tragedy.
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At a Monday evening news conference, Levine Cava said Miami-Dade County officials have begun to audit all structures four stories and taller in the county that are approaching the 40-year recertification mark, along with 10 buildings that recently completed that process and 14 buildings in unincorporated Miami-Dade County that meet those guidelines. Any possible life-threatening issues with those structures will be addressed, Levine Cava said.
The governor said the first step is to “identify why this happened,” and he cautioned against expecting quick answers. “This is going to take a long time.”
People gather at a vigil late Monday in Surfside. The vigil honored those who died, are missing or are injured after the collapse of the Champlain Tower South condominium building on Thursday. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier) (Marta Lavandier/AP)
2018 warnings
A 2018 engineering consultant’s report warned of “major structural damage” at the base of the building and also identified a “major error” in the placement of waterproofing on a flat rather than sloped surface, allowing the pooling of water.
The report to the condo association by Morabito Consultants said “failed waterproofing” below the pool deck and entrance drive at Champlain Towers South had led to significant deterioration of the concrete.
Replacing the waterproofing would be “extremely expensive,” the report stated, because it would require removal of the concrete slab above it.
“Failure to replace the waterproofing in the near future will cause the extent of the concrete deterioration to expand exponentially,” said the report, which was signed by Frank Morabito, the company’s president.
After completing the 2018 report, the firm was hired in June 2020 to create plans for the repairs, which would be done by another company.
“At the time of the building collapse, roof repairs were underway, but concrete restoration had not yet begun,” the statement said.
The report was posted on the Town of Surfside’s website along with inspection reports and other documents about the collapsed building.
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Toll continues to rise
Miami-Dade Police identified three more victims Monday night as Marcus Joseph Guara, 52, Frank Kleiman, 55, and Michael David Altman, 50.
The names of another four people confirmed killed in the disaster were released Sunday night.
The remains of Luis Bermudez, 26, his mother Anna Ortiz, 46, Leon Oliwkowicz, 80, and Christina Beatriz Evira, 74, were discovered after rescue workers labored to dig a 125-foot trench through the rubble of the Champlain Towers South tower, Miami-Dade police said.
“God decided that he wanted one more angel in heaven. I still do not believe it. I LOVE you and will love you forever,” Luis Bermudez’s father, who is also named Luis Bermudez, wrote on Facebook.
Of the 11 confirmed fatalities so far, one died at the hospital and the others were found dead at the site.
All 11 victims found so far have been identified. The first four victims to be named were Stacie Dawn Fang, 54, Antonio Lozano, 83, Gladys Lozano, 79, and Manuel LaFont, 54.
Families and individuals who have been displaced were told they can register at SurfsideReunite.com, an alert system created by the state of Florida, Miami-Dade County and the town of Surfside to provide updates and access to resources. People can register for alerts by visiting SurfsideReunite.com or by calling the toll-free number 833-930-3701.
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