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06-24-2021 07:11 AM - edited 06-24-2021 07:14 AM
This happened overnight, but a condo building in Miami partially collapsed. One side of the building is just gone.
From pictures, it fell from the top down.
They don't know how many are injured, or have died, or what caused the collaspse.
I just heard that there is one confirmed death, and they pulled one boy out alive.
06-24-2021 07:18 AM
I've been following this story on the news this morning. What causes a building to just collapse? People were sleeping in their apartments and it just falls? The building was built in 1981, so not terribly old. Were there warning signs?
06-24-2021 07:28 AM
@tototwo wrote:I've been following this story on the news this morning. What causes a building to just collapse? People were sleeping in their apartments and it just falls? The building was built in 1981, so not terribly old. Were there warning signs?
My first thought is that when it was built, somebody decided to cut corners to save money. But that's a total and complete guess on my part.
06-24-2021 07:39 AM
That's exactly what my husband said to me, shotty construction in the 80's........praying for those who are trapped under the rubble.
06-24-2021 07:42 AM
I live about an hour from there. The condo buildings and homes in S Fl are made of concrete block and concrete with steel rebar imbedded in the concrete. The building pancaked only on the ocean side, the apartments on the street side are intact. I suspect this was an engineering error when it was built, rebar is well known to corrode and fail from salt air near the ocean.
06-24-2021 07:45 AM
What caused it to collapse? Way too early to say for sure, but it appears to have been a largely concrete structure, likely made with post-tensioned concrete. Post-tensioned concrete is very strong but its strength depends on the tensioned steel rebar/cable that gives it strength staying tensioned. When that tension fails, so does the concrete. In an environment like Miami where corrosion from airborne seawater mist can create corrosion, it's possible the rebar/cables deteriorated to the point where the tension failed and the structure collapsed. That would be my initial thought.
If there was an underground parking garage (unlikely in Miami, but you never know) then I'd also be looking at the possibility that a vehicle hit and damaged one of the structural members in the garage. Being in Florida there's also the possibility of a sinkhole developing in the wrong place.
A failure in the post-tensioned concrete would still be my prime suspect. Those types of structures are unlikely to age well in a marine-type environment. Forty years of exposure to saltier air tends not to be good for steel. Post-tensioned members tend to leave some steel exposed to the atmosphere and corrosion becomes an issue. The steel cables often used as tensioners are especially susceptible to issues as they're made up of individual wire strands woven together. Those strands can almost act like a wick allowing moisture to enter deep into the concrete. Rebar is much less wick-like, but even that can fail in those types of environments.
06-24-2021 08:46 AM
How does this happen in America? Using cheaper materials? Mistakes by engineers? This is awful and I hope there are no more casualties.
06-24-2021 09:32 AM
My first thought was maybe the ground shifted. Maybe built on sandy soil?
But, looking at the photos, looks like it collapsed from the top going down?
RIP, and hopefully many others will be rescued.
Very dangerous for the brave rescue people and firefighters.
Let's hope for the best of safety and good luck.
06-24-2021 09:40 AM
I looked at the slide show of photos a few minutes ago. My first thought was erosion.
06-24-2021 09:47 AM
Very sad, I will wait for more facts to become available before drawing any conclusions.
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