After an urgent review, residents of a Miami condominium with ten stories were forced to flee after it was found unsafe because of structural and electrical problems. After the collapse of Champlain South in Surfside, a condo high-rise in North Miami Beach with 156 units was damaged, the Crestview Towers Condominium had to be evacuated. According to a press release, the evacuation was ordered by Crestview Towers after the association submitted a January inspection report. The engineer retained by the condo association board found that the Crestview Towers Condominium in North Miami Beach was structurally and electrically unsound.AdvertisementOfficers began going door to door on Friday, telling condo residents that they needed to move. The city closed the building immediately out of an abundance and residents were evacuated. After officials threatened to shut down the condo association, the condo association turned in its January report Friday afternoon. The building is mostly home to low- and middle-income residents. City officials evacuated the building shortly afterward, leaving residents scrambling to find a place to stay for the weekend.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe extensive review of older structures in the area led to the evacuation. Miami-Dade County has, for instance, ordered an audit of all buildings on the oceanfront that are less than four decades old. As rescue efforts in Surfside continue, several cities located outside of the county's jurisdiction have decided to conduct their own audits. There are currently 22 confirmed deaths from the partial collapse at Champlain Towers South, with another 126 missing. Surfside had little to report except that the number missing dropped from 145 after duplicates were removed and officials concluded that some of the names on the list were safe. This is excellent news, Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava stated. Rescue workers are still optimistic about finding other survivors, and officials refuse to say when search-and rescue efforts could shift to recovery.
