Residents of a Miami condominium have been evacuated from a condominium deemed unsafe, forcing city officials to help them find temporary shelter, a city spokesperson said on Tuesday.
The eight-story building, which includes 138 units, was evacuated Monday morning. The city’s Department of Social Services and the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust help residents find housing.
“We don’t know where we’re going to go,†resident Dairon Deramico told CBS Miami. “The city says it’s going to give us a place, maybe for a few weeks or a few days. I don’t know what’s going to happen.
The city said it informed employees on July 7 that the building had failed its 40-year re-certification, CBS Miami reported. On August 9, the city’s building department found that unauthorized work had taken place on the building and declared that “the columns were structurally insufficient”.
“My grandfather just walked into the house shouting, ‘We have to leave immediately,’ Mya Castanedo, a resident, told the station. “It’s really chaotic because we don’t get a definitive answer on what’s going on. Everyone is just trying to pack their things and find a place to go.
Another resident, Marialejandra Perez, said she immediately packed her bags for her mother and grandmother before herding her dogs. “We’re right here, you know, waiting. “
The evacuation took place six weeks after the collapse of the condominium in Surfside which left 97 people dead. Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava has requested an inspection of all high-rise buildings 40 years and older.
Last month, another condo in North Miami Beach was evacuated after an inspection revealed unsafe structural conditions.
