Investigation into Surfside collapse confirms pool deck flaws

Flaws in the design and construction of Champlain Towers South’s pool deck exposed that portion of the building to “critically low margins against failure,” a newly released investigation found. 

Designs fell short of building codes, and slab columns and fixtures had “severe” strength deficiencies in several places at the pool deck, according to the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s findings. 

NIST is investigating the cause of the collapse of the Surfside condominium, which toppled in the early morning hours of June 24, 2021, killing 98 people. 

While NIST’s final report isn’t expected until May 2025, its preliminary findings validate long-held theories about issues at the building’s pool deck, including witness accounts that portions of the deck toppled first. NIST said it has spent more than $17 million on the investigation. 

Investigators also found pool deck construction deviated from both the code and original designs, a summary of the findings says. Slab reinforcements were placed two inches deep into the concrete slabs, more than the three-quarter-inch depth as designed. Issues were exacerbated when heavy planters were added to the north side of the pool deck, creating cracks and structural distress.  

In a summary of its findings, a page titled “physical manifestations of structural distress” points to a planter box and a cracked planter wall atop a “sagging slab.”  

NIST is looking into multiple possible causes of the collapse, though it has ruled out explosions or other events that could have prompted the building to come down. 

A building failure that started at the pool deck is a “leading hypothesis,” said Ken Hover, a Cornell University professor who is part of the investigating team, the Miami Herald reported. 

For its investigation, NIST examined the building code that dictated construction standards at the time the 40-year-old Champlain was constructed, as well as the building’s design, the summary of the findings says. Investigators also interviewed witnesses and tested structural materials. 

NIST’s findings aren’t the first time engineers have determined the pool deck had issues. 

In preparation for its 40-year certification, an engineer’s report found “major structural damage” to the slab below the pool deck caused by “abundant concrete cracking and spalling” as well as failed waterproofing below the deck. 

The investigation continues underway, despite the sale of the property. Dubai-based Damac Properties, led by Hussain Sajwani, paid $120 million for the collapse site after emerging as the sole bidder. Damac filed two sets of plans this week for a 57-unit luxury condo building. 

Former Judge Michael Hanzman, now senior counsel at law firm Bilzin Sumberg, approved a major settlement totaling more than $1 billion in the class action lawsuit over the collapse last year. The settlement, finalized last summer, included hundreds of millions of dollars from Securitas, the security firm for Champlain Towers South, and from insurers for the development team of Eighty Seven Park, the condo project next door. 

A memorial is planned for a portion of 88th Street, immediately north of the former building. 

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