The Hard Truth about the Champlain Tower (Surfside) Building Collapse.

If you’ve been following the updates on the Champlain Tower (Surfside) Building collapse it is devastating to hear that this has taken the lives of 27 people and that there are approximately 118 people whom have still not been accounted for. The building collapse occurred in the early morning of June 24th with approximately 55 of the building’s 136 units crumbing to the ground. In an effort to speed up the search for any survivors, the remaining people were evacuated and demolition was performed on Sunday, July 4th to allow the rescue team to access the whole area without the threat of the remaining structure collapsing during their search. For all of us who have been keeping up with the news, the first question that comes to mind is: How does this happen?

The Champlain Towers South, developed in 1981, was a steel-reinforced concrete structure with 136 apartments spread across 12 stories on the beachfront in Surfside, FL. Although annual engineering records and reports weren’t necessary until the 90’s, there were no complaints on the construction of the building until approximately 3 years ago. An engineering consultant was hired to review the structure of the Champlain Tower and notably stated that there was “major structural damage” to the concrete slab below the pool deck and abundant cracking and crumbling of the columns. The engineer’s report was used to help start plans for a multimillion-dollar repair project that was set to get underway soon but the catastrophic collapse occurred the morning of June 24th.

Your next question may be: What would cause this? One of my answers is: waterproofing. A major cause of any structural damage, like Champlain Towers, is the amount of water that is able to travel through every single crack or crevasse which by default would weaken the structural integrity over a period of time. In reviewing the video, it appears that the breaking point/failure of the building came from the bottom indicating that the columns must have started buckling and eventually gave way. Being that Florida is more susceptible to undergo heavy rain events, waterproofing is such an important aspect that it has it’s own section in the Florida Residential Building Code, R406. In addition, the buildings location near the salt water are more liable to have sped up the structural damage due to the corrosive component of salt itself. Foundation waterproofing and waterproofing especially for a building with a pool deck is so important to maintain because it can make the structure impermeable to water which will provide longevity and durability for the structure.

https://www.aquatechwaterproofing.ca/basement-seepage-after-heavy-rain/

Although work is resuming to investigate the site and search for the remaining residents, occurrences like this proves that engineering is so important to the safety and welfare of the public. With the devastation of the Champlain Towers collapse, I hope it intensifies the push to tighten up structural/building code requirements and other important regulations for all cities in the U.S.

Continue to check CNN for updates. Praying for all the families!