A Miami-Dade grand jury’s report on the Surfside condo collapse came out Wednesday, and it has some strong recommendations for condo safety all across Florida.
While the report does not conclude what caused the deadly collapse, it does list recommendations on how to avoid a tragedy like this from ever happening again.
In fact, the grand jury found some serious missteps that must be addressed.
Some of the main takeaways from the report:
- The Florida Condominium Act, the statute that oversees condos, needs serious revision.
- State and local governments must focus on preventing structural deterioration. One way to do that would be by starting the 40-year recertification process sooner, at 10-15 years.
- The report also says condo boards across the state must be more involved and accountable for protecting lives and preserving structures.
- And the Florida Department of Business and Regulation, which supervises condo associations, needs to be restructured.
“After listening to numerous building construction experts, evaluative panels and involved individuals, the grand jury came to a strong conclusion: save lives, not just money,” Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said in a statement. “I hope this report provides an effective pathway to do that.”
The Champlain Towers South condo in Surfside collapsed in the early morning hours of June 24. Ninety-eight people died in what has been considered one of the deadliest building failures.
The 40-year old building was undergoing recertification at the time of its collapse.
In the conclusion of this report, it is made very clear that if steps are not taken immediately, there is serious concern another building collapse could happen.
Click here to see the full report.