A Miami-area apartment complex has made headlines in the past few weeks after a portion of it collapsed, crushing those below. The death toll has climbed to 28, although 117 are still missing.
“I’m in awe of the men and women of the use our task force teams who’ve been continuing to brave, dangerous, dangerous and changing conditions for 12 days, fire, smoke, and now wind and torrential rain, they are continuing the mission and the search of the collapse area,” Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava told reporters Monday evening.
The death toll will likely continue to rise once search operations pick up after Hurricane Elsa. The most upsetting factor in this collapse is that it seems alarm bells were raised about the structural issues of the building long before its collapse.
One woman said that residents started to notice issues with the building when construction workers started erecting the Eighty Seven Park high rise next door.
“Everyone in town knew the problems they were facing,” she told CNN. “My neighbors could feel the vibration — they protested, they complained, nothing happened. I signed so many petitions.”
Residents report feeling like their home “was shaking all the time” during construction. A construction injury attorney in Sherman Oaks will tell you that structural collapses very rarely come out of nowhere; whether it’s during the design process or while the building is being lived in, there will be clear signs of instability and dilapidation.
It’s important for property owners to conduct regular inspections to ensure that the building is safe for all invitees and licensees. Because of this, they should be able to identify and fix any hazards that may result in accidental injury or death. The owner must fix them, or else they are negligent, and a Sherman Oaks personal injury attorney will use this as ammunition in their lawsuit.
In the event that you have been injured due to a property owner’s negligence, contact our accident injury law firm. We can make sure that whoever neglected their duty of care to protect you has to face the legal repercussions.