Just weeks after the partial collapse of Champlain Towers South in Surfside, Florida, left 98 people dead, another condo building in neighboring Miami was evacuated Monday night after the structure was deemed to be unsafe.
According to NBC News, the 137-unit building at 5050 NW Seventh Street had been placed on the unsafe structure list in May based on images of property damage. The building director told NBC Miami that the structural integrity has been degraded by the contractor proceeding with the repairs that they were not authorized to do.
The condominium was also found to be non-compliant with the city’s recertification process.
According to the report, city officials met with residents on July 26 regarding concerns over the building. At that time, the garage had to be closed because of structural concerns.
Last week, the city said an engineer sent a letter to officials saying the “building was safe for current occupancy while the emergency repair work continued,” the Miami Herald reported. However, a visit yesterday by inspectors determined that the repair work was more intensive than originally though, promoting the city to order residents to vacate the building.
The building was previously scheduled to be part of a hearing at a city unsafe structure panel on Aug. 20.