MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – Blasting from rock quarries in northwest Miami-Dade has been a longstanding concern and annoyance for residents in both Miami-Dade and Broward counties; on Monday night, residents had a chance to address Miami-Dade officials about the issues during a meeting.
The meeting was held in the county’s far-northwestern Country Club area, near the county line.
Cracks in concrete and leaks in backyard swimming pools are just some of the problems homeowners say is a direct result of seismic waves from the quarries.
“All you got to do is just be at 11:00 in my area and the pots and pans around my house will shake,” resident Angelo Garcia said.
Some residents document the problems on video and the headaches are endless for people helplessly caught in the middle.
Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, who was at the meeting, is asking residents to submit complaints. It’s an issue she said her office has been investigating for months, but the county has no jurisdiction over the rock mining operations since the state now has control over regulations and the companies that connect politically.
“Hopefully this year there will be a hearing on that law that will change the allowable blasting levels, that will be something that will be beneficial, these residents believe,” Levine Cava said.
State Rep. Tom Fabricio, R-Miami Lakes, was also at the meeting and said, “While I fight this issue every single day, most of the other members don’t see it the way that we do.”
Residents remain frustrated.
“We have no say into something that’s damaging our homes here,” homeowner Abel Fernandez said.
The meeting concluded with no concrete solutions.
Homeowners were told to be diligent about documenting the vibrations and subsequent damage.
They were also told that the county has does not have standing to sue over the blasts.