The oceanfront condominium building that collapsed near Miami had “major structural damage” to a concrete slab below its pool deck that needed to be extensively repaired, according to a 2018 engineering report on the building.
The report was among a series of documents released by the city of Surfside as rescuers continued to dig Saturday through the rubble of the building in an effort to find any of the 159 people who remain unaccounted for after its collapse. At least four people were killed.
Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett said firefighters also battled a fire believed to be burning inside the collapsed building’s underground parking garage. Smoke created a haze at the base of the building.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis says he has signed an emergency declaration to get FEMA assistance to those displaced by the collapse in Surfside
“That building is done,” Gov. DeSantis said after issuing an emergency declaration for Miami-Dade County. “They’re never going to go back and live there. They’re going to need housing, they’re going to need arrangements.”