Miami Condo Collapse: More Contributing Factors, Root Cause

[@jeffostroff]

⛔⛔ Official Surfside Support Pages, only send aid to vetted support sites! There are scams related to disasters, you should avoid unvetted fundraisers. ⛔ Support Surfside: supportsurfside.org/ ⛔ GoFundMe Official Vetted Pages for Donations to Surfside collapse victims: www.gofundme.com/c/act/surfside-condo-collapse-fundraisers

[@randymaxey3888]

If you look at the video of the firemen playing with the jack hammer zoom in, areas where pavers are missing it appears as there was some kind of barrier (water) ? under the sand the pavers was on.

[@monicakelley2733]

You are amazing to listen to. My dad is an architect from back in the late 60s 70s so I was around draftsmen...and the hatted lawsuits of leaky roof days (let's justleave that for now). .But,.... you are one of the finest engineers I have ever seen. I agree with yr complete theory of what happened and more than a theory but you hit the nail on the head with all your points of reasons this fell. My heart just bleeds for the victims and the family friends and all. Still in my prayers . I also pray EVERY CONDO OUT THERE IS STEICTLY CHECKED OVER BY SOMEONE OF YR CALLIBUR FOR SAFETY AND THESE BUILDS SHUT DOWN IF NO UP TO PAR. Your view in the extra weight by each owner's remodels is also dead on. This should be seen as an issue throughout ALL condos and owners to stick to higher guidelines when doing remodeling. There needs to be weight limit set on all ALL type upgrades no matter what it is. My question is this....if they would of shored up under the structure down in the garage until further repairs and testing could of been done....would it of kept this disaster from happening. ??? Great work brother and GB you for all yr HARD work. Sis Monica

[@hazelkagey6739]

Jeff, in one of your first videos I brought up the point about newer updates to the old original materials. I worked for years cleaning condos and many original units had Plexiglas shower stalls, ugly partical board cabinets and 'orange peal' paint on decks. The old stuff weighed less than granite and marble. I asked different managers how the buildings could hold all that extra weight. Many things together may have caused "the perfect storm" scenario. One thing that may not have been thought of was that during our frequent hurricanes here on the gulf coast is that the intense wind causes the rain to be driven sideways. That would've forced even more water between the floors and layers of tiles. Knowing what I know about them, you couldn't give me a unit. Keep up the great work. You have the most sensible narritive of all.

[@dawnbaker8023]

Carpet in FL? I'm guessing they exist, but I personally have never seen a condo in FL with carpet; even in the 80s.

[@takethehighroad5027]

what about the extra weight from the penthouse? as that was added at later date so it would have put more weight on the support collums

[@CassandraBankson]

*The amount of time, intellect, and dedication it takes to put content like this together is astounding. Thank you for helping bring your expertise to all of this, and hopefully bring a few answers to those who need closure.* 💕

[@robindodd1969]

Don't get it twisted, he's far from an "expert"... BUT I agree that his content is very enjoyable.

[@lifewithduchenne3030]

JEFF THE JACK OFF DID NOT DO THE HARD WORK. HE STOLE IT FROM SOMEONE ELSE.

[@chiz1611]

@@lifewithduchenne3030 Agree This guy is a total opportunist milking it for every dime he can get.

[@CapStar362]

@@lifewithduchenne3030 why are you even here then ?

[@CapStar362]

@@chiz1611 you as well, take a hike if you dont like Jeff and his presentations

[@npc1374]

I would have never taken into consideration the private remodeling of individual apartments as extra weight onto the structure. very good and valid point.......

[@williamhaynes7089]

plus if anyone removes carpet in a unit and replaces with heavy tile, that changes the weight also

[@dloadthis1617]

The added weight of granite topped counters of people that were remodeling their kitchens could also be a factor

[@AlexA-bx8jr]

They also added the penthouse level. That alone could have been a million pounds?

[@drdrew3]

The weight of the building is irrelevant. Once you take away a supporting column the building must fall - even off it weighs 10 pounds. The root cause was the collapse of the deck that shared the support column. The building stood fine with all those renovations until the column was removed

[@npc1374]

@@drdrew3 I understand that without support the building was going to fall, but would it have "pancaked" like it did? without the extra weight would it have fallen differently leaving more pockets for people to survive in???

[@beckaboo3872]

Whenever you have a disaster like this, there are always several causes. Thank you for giving your information

[@williamnelson4103]

This ranks with the best of the KZbin videos and documentaries out there. Your explanations are clear, concise and substantiate each other. Your theories are very plausible and probably will be seen and recognized after the ‘official’ findings are released. Great job.

[@jeffostroff]

Thanks William

[@ReasonQuest]

Jeff, your voice is almost hypnotic, and your content is so awesome. WHY would I ever want to FF the speed to X2? Thanks for your stuff. It's great.

[@cigel6952]

Similar to Charlie Sheen's voice, no?

[@DisasterLoveMCL]

I was thinking the same thing

[@marchesa2u]

I guess I'm not the only one who feels this way. 🤭

[@webcompanion]

You are doing an insane amount of research and it's all good! I am a mechanical engineer and I am with you when you present your evidence and reasons why the collapse took place. It's stunning. No news program even comes 100x close to the detail you provide. Thank you.

[@webcompanion]

@@gnyc7284 I would think tons of steel and rock falling onto itself all at once is not going to leave much of any noticeable items. It's like a giant coffee grinder that's only on for 1-2 seconds but the results are going to be devastating

[@robertjromero9488]

The first thing I noticed when I saw the pictures of interiors taken before collapse was how incredibly heavy everything looked. Marble floors with heavy, heavy furniture. And big huge closets full of shelves. Each unit.

[@sunnygirl87]

And OPEN. many of the Kitchens, Dining, Living rooms were open concept.

[@kalisomeone9598]

good on you for working day & night figuring this out. i know how it is when something obsesses you. i bet this helps people a lot to cope with the trauma to understand what exactly happened.

[@normanechelberry8139]

I would like to comment also that from experience, Here in Genova Italy we had a bridge collapse calle Morandi Bridge. This bridge was constructed under specific conditions and unfortunately over the many years that passed the conditions changed due to the size and weight that crosses the bridge. With maintenance failures and conditions changing the bridge collapsed and killed 43 innocent people.

[@icaruseffect4072]

Thanks Jeff.. I appreciate your analysis I've followed this since the dust cleared on the collapse of this building..I've been an engineer for 30 years and I'm retired not so retired.. I own D&D designs.. we do custom woodworking. I followed several other channels , engineers and personal friends of mine that have been in the business for more then 30 years and I concur.. I commented on another gentleman's channel a couple weeks ago and he completely had a meltdown called you a tool salesman.. and insulting me and my family ...in glad he can make money on KZbin... lol but I have thick skin.. I truly believe your analysis is pretty close to being correct. I want to thank you for your time.

[@stage1greg]

been watching all your videos on this, thank you for covering it.

[@notgreatnotterrible48years63]

You make the best videos covering this whole tragedy. Very easy to follow along

[@jeffostroff]

thanks!

[@RPKGameVids]

Ever since I started thinking about it I sometimes worry about the weight of the furniture, myself, and the weights and bench in my upstairs room, as I find it surprising that just a regular wooden floor in a regular house can take all that weight. So sometimes I'll get really paranoid about the floor collapsing. Yet I don't really think there's any more weight in there than most other upstairs rooms in other houses. So to see all that heavy marble and granite throughout the condo, it makes me think 'Wow, that's pretty extreme!'. I would not feel comfortable being in a place like that.

[@lindadadey7227]

Jeff, you are so conscientious in your investigative reporting of this tragedy and can only imagine the hours you have spent in the forensics of this collapse.

[@IDIturboDiesel]

He is just plagiarizing someone else's content.

[@merrywalsh2809]

Really cool, the crowdsourcing collaboration going on here. Great work Jeff. You’ve outdone yourself on this.

[@riseabove3082]

You have the best analysis on this, it's for enlightening. Very well detailed and explained.

[@grny28]

I'm addicted to these videos. I can see where all that added weight from upgrades make perfect sense.

[@damako7072]

Thanks for making these videos Jeff and all your hard work and time that you put into them. Much appreciated.

[@Martins_Musings]

The question regarding the cumulative weight of more expensive and heavier finishes is a really interesting one Jeff! Congratulations, I haven't heard anyone else bring this up, but I think one would have to be a fool not to at least take it into consideration. I did a kitchen remodel and watched them bring in 2 very large thick stone countertops. I couldn't believe they managed to get it up a curved stairway but it does take a lot of care and skill.. and muscle!!

[@christinemiller6997]

I love the details he brings out in the various pictures, things you wouldn't notice or know. He gives a makes-lots-of-sense analysis, and I'm very grateful that he stayed awake until the wee hours, working on this!

[@TSUNAMI-MAMI]

He’s just gossiping he has no deeper analysis as a professional. If you want professional, people who actually know what they’re talking about… Building Integrity on KZbin

[@douggardner9175]

Yeah right he stayed awake stealing video information from another KZbin video he's nothing more than a poacher..........

[@dozaarchives2225]

@@TSUNAMI-MAMI I've watched both from the beginning. And they both reached the same conclusions. Jeff notices things that the BI guy doesn't however BI is better at explaining how slabs and walls are built, and why they are built that way. Both are valuable sources.

[@minigirl6379]

SPERTS- It's all conjecture at this point. None of these websleuths actually know anything. It's just their daily guessing games to keep generating views on this horrific tragedy. At some point, these videos need to stop, until they can definitively say what caused the collapse. They're just rehashing info that doesn't mean anything really. They're not on the official team of investigators who are looking at the real data. My thoughts or your thoughts mean as much as this guy's opinion.

[@lowlee78]

I’ve been appreciating your perspective and in depth research. Thank you for your tireless work for answers for the victims families and the survivors.

[@JasonFlorida]

The sad thing is Ive seen so many failed building implosions where they can't bring the building down even with planned explosions but this building fell down on it's own like dominos. Sad

[@TheGamerClubber]

So true...😕

[@MrEvpatoria]

Yep, it's the design...

[@ShalomShalom-d5c]

A structural Eng got hold of orig plans & they didnt put enuf steel into the ceiling of garage, which is the floor of the condos and pool deck, to distribute the weight properly. Im sure the water added to that. Im also sure there will be several contributing factors. Its like a perfect storm.

[@Johnny-dp5mu]

If you neglect proper necessary maintenance and overload and fail to drain a deck not not not design!!!! Well beyond the control of the design team!!! 40 years is evidence beyond doubt that response party is the owners period

[@MrEvpatoria]

@@Johnny-dp5mu You said it yourself, a failed deck resulted in a hundred lives lost and the complete collapse of the structure that shouldn't be fused to the deck. 40 years is nothing, just ask them Europeans. As they say, it's the design, stupid.

[@johncoil1418]

Jeff - The deck failure at the guest parking is in a nice straight line because it is a construction joint and at a vertical 1'6" vertical offset at a portion of this slab.

[@jeffostroff]

Good to know thanks!

[@tomjacobson5530]

yeah, was destroyed by a controlled explosion by the us government to destroy one of McAfee's suspected condos he owned inside this building "possibly" containing some of the 31TB of data he had against the US regarding Corruption

[@No1414body]

Should have been doweled at that joint

[@designstudio8013]

@@tomjacobson5530 easier to cleanout his apt dude

[@designstudio8013]

@@No1414body much more than that needed and if an elevation change a thickened edge or beam. Disgracefully incompetent engineer.

[@ceceliabradley1098]

You do a fantastic job of explaining everything. I appreciate your work you put into it. Your voice is almost soothing to listen to. Thanks again

[@oliviashuii364]

Thanks Been following all your videos. Great work.

[@jeffostroff]

Awesome, thank you Olivia!

[@jfaber99]

Never thought of the renovation weight. I wonder if that’s taken into account with other buildings during their inspections.

[@teakdougyfresh9528]

Yes and no. Depends on the builder and owner. Lots of building built by the mob probably dont. And money is a factor

[@fallinginthed33p]

Would that extra weight negate the 1.5x safety factor for loading? It reminds me of the South Korean mall collapse where extra AC units on the roof and kitchen equipment slowly weakened the support structure until the whole thing collapsed.

[@ecas4315]

I’ve heard the penthouses weren’t in the original design of the building either

[@williamhaynes7089]

Each unit also may have born with carpet, but now have travertine tile and marble counter tops etc.... all ads weight

[@johngreydanus2033]

makes all those skyscrapers in New York even more amazing right?

[@helenphillips7709]

Thank you for the time you spend to bring light to the cause of this tragedy

[@kakel536]

Excellent video! You made it easy to understand by adding graphics and continuously pointing to what you were referring to. This is the best video I've seen on the subject... Thank you!

[@kineahora8736]

Great video Jeff. I’m following this channel and Josh Porter’s “Building Integrity” channel for continuing coverage of this incident-both excellent analyses of what may have happened.

[@ShalomShalom-d5c]

I love Porters chan too

[@olegkosygin2993]

I wish these two end up making a career at teaching, because they made a complex subject interesting.

[@some_soaper4745]

Thank you for all of the info you have worked so hard to provide. I hadn’t considered the impact the increased weight from renovations.

[@Inkling777]

Sounds like the excellent beach-front location of this condo led to the upscaling of these units and thus the increase in their weight that you describe. That made them look better without being better constructed.

[@sarablackwolfdancer9359]

I didn't realize the sand and the pavers were a retrofit! Absolutely, all that extra weight AND the water weight since there was no drainage, would have been a major factor!

[@mowtivatedmechanic1172]

@@jeffostroff what if they had just screened the original drain and let the water percolate down to it? No doubt the pavers and sand weight was astronomical and would of matched/exceeded its original human weight limit. Not sure why the building department cleared that permit. Add to the the trees and planters…. Just sad man.

[@billj5645]

Well there would have been some kind of pavers, mortar, grout, setting bed, etc. on the original building. We don't know if changes over the years added weight or just replaced what was already there.

[@CoolasIce2]

Regarding the deck, was there any kind of weight limit for vehicles, work trucks, etc..that were allowed to drive on it?

[@billj5645]

@@CoolasIce2 There are no design loads listed on the drawings. There are 2 areas of deck- the part that is visible in the collapse videos where 8 or so vehicles are parked could be considered normal passenger car parking. It would have to have a headache bar placed at its entrance to restrict vehicles to 7' tall or maybe 6'-10" tall in order to keep out bigger trucks. This is what is commonly done in most parking garages. Design loading for normal passenger cars is very low, much lower than what people would think, but it is still more than adequate for vehicles that could fit under a 7' restriction. However that area being outside the building, next to planters, etc. it should be designed for "plaza load" since lots of things could happen there including small forklifts, front end loaders, piles of dirt while working on planters, concentrations of potted plants and small trees waiting to be planted, stacks of pool deck tile pavers, etc. Since you never know who's going to stack what on there you should design that area of minimum of 2.5 times the normal passenger car parking load. Now the other area that nobody talks about is the drive under the building on the west side that is for "deliveries". You could have significantly larger vehicles driving on that area, much heaver than normal passenger cars. However if that area was designed for "plaza load" as I've discussed then it would have capacity for most if not all types of delivery vehicles. There is still an overhang at the edge of the building that delivery vehicles would have to drive under so large trucks, fire trucks, etc. would likely not fit and wouldn't be under there. Passenger cars and SUVs are usually in the range of 3000 to 6000 pounds but a plumber's truck could be a bit heavier. Delivery vehicles other than semi trucks can get to 40,000 pounds.

[@agostinodibella9939]

How many more 40 + years old buildings are out there with similar issues that are disasters waiting to happen?

[@garym444]

I live in Calgary Alberta Canada and see one with cracks everywhere. engineering reports should be mandatory

[@dinaboop]

Isn't it pretty common in Russia for people to live in big old concrete buildings? I wonder how many of those are ticking time bombs.

[@carolbell8008]

Water logged concrete was the issue here.

[@dingdong2103]

@@dinaboop Those are built like Soviet tanks lol.

[@mangos2888]

You’re the first KZbinr to “remind” me how yo speed up the playback and I absolutely love it! I also really appreciate the hightlighted pointer because I am that viewer watching from bed on my phone. Thank you!

[@NatalieFromCA]

I had the same thoughts from day 1 about the heavy marble counters ect. All of the extra weight definitely can effect the integrity of the total load allotment. My parents own a few condos in Naples Fl. And it’s incredible how some of the original condos look, when you see the updated fancy condos!!

[@commercialvoiceover]

Jeff, I am a career broadcaster and dont think I could as good a job as you have done with your series on Champlain Condos. The fact that it is so well thought out and explained in lay terms makes this investigation interesting and compelling to watch.

[@Marvyvans]

You are so good at explaining everything. I know nothing about construction or engineering but I understand everything when you explain it. You would make a great engineering professor at a college.

[@sandyrose2398]

You did a great job explaining ur opinion of the collapse. I'm heartsick thinking about all those lives that were lost.Hoping this never happens again.

[@JasonFlorida]

Interesting Jeff at 11:00 you are talking about weight of improvements. I also thaught about the weight of all the natural stone floors in every room in every condo! You know in the 80s it was all carpet and cheap ceramic in the kitchen and linoleum in the baths. You know that they had to level the floor first, then thinset, and grout. That's a lot of weight. So I guess adding weight to a structure that's failing with basically rotting rebar. Ooof scary. You sure think of everything! I like it!

[@billj5645]

Adding a granite floor or granite countertop is a very small percentage increase in load, you can do the math yourself. There is always the concept of the straw that broke the camels back, but we have evidence that the failure initiated outside of the building.

[@lindap.p.1337]

Bingo! Hey….I know some people in Clermont, Fl.

[@JasonFlorida]

@@billj5645 it is unkown what percentage of the cause was due to increased loading on those columns. Also, not really... those are such small columns, spaced rather far apart, and also at least 13 floors. You do the math, what was around 136 condos plus the common areas. That's a lot of square feet of natural stone, marble, granite countertops, etc. What may not be a factor though is that the average weight of humans went way up since 1979 and everyone was at home sleeping with all their cars full in the garage.

[@JasonFlorida]

@@lindap.p.1337 Hi there, That's pretty random! Clermont is a small suburb of Orlando

[@billj5645]

@@JasonFlorida I did the math. I know how to calculate floor loads and the compression capacity of reinforced concrete columns.

[@deandanielson8074]

Jeff, you have provided valuable information not only to us the public but also for the official investigation to follow. Well done. - Dean from Minnesota

[@minnahumble2294]

When you looked thru notes from the HOA meetings, did you read about why the board resigned? Wasn’t that 2 or 3 years ago? What was the specific issue that caused such a rupture? I am following your channel and have learned a lot from your analysis. Well done.

[@Funsho97]

Exactly, I would like to know what owners voted no to the "costly" repairs and, kind of morbid but, how many of those owners survived, how many perished. I couldn't live with myself knowing that I voted no and then the building falls down killing so many people. Also, those that voted no shouldn't get a damn dime!!!

[@relentlesspursuitofshade1234]

@@Funsho97 I live in a condo. We don’t vote on repairs as owners. We vote fir the board and the board makes decisions on maintenance and repairs. They also should be reserving fund’s for maintenance like roof, paint, driveway maintenance, pool resurfacing, etc. those major repairs should be budgeted for reserves every year so that when it needs to happen, you don’t get slapped with a $100k assessment like these poor people did. Their board was clearly negligent at surfside. I’m not entirely fond of the board where I live but they are fiscally responsible with money. Trees come down when they are dangerous. When I remodeled my kitchen, we took out a wall but kept the load bearing support pole and one board member questioned my . Why not take out that pole? Well we got the drawings from the county and it points right to the pole “load brg “ so we kept it. Apparently my neighbor across from us remodeled the same kitchen and took the pole out. Our board had surveyors out in the property a week later. That is what a responsible board does. And that leads to another point, as Jeff points out in this video, how many people remodel their condos and do whatever they want and have no idea how it affects the integrity of the building as a whole?

[@Alan_Kirby]

@@relentlesspursuitofshade1234 I own a Florida condo on the beach. Our maintenance expenditures are forecasted for each upcoming year and the budget is approved by all condo members at the annual meeting. The board has the authority to make unbudgeted repairs, but over a certain amount ($25k in our case) these expenditures require a majority vote by condo members. The condo members, not only the board, have the responsibility and authority to forecast maintenance and repairs.

[@MyOver50]

@@Alan_Kirby Do they have a regular professional inspection of the whole building? That's what's necessary in a Capital Plan. I also think it's important to have regs on modernization of units, especially with regards to weight(solid surface rather than stone) & structural changes(removal of load bearing walls,re-configuration of units).

[@MikeKayK]

I'm confused why there is more water in the part of the garage that's underneath the "dry" building rather than the part underneath the water-logged pool deck.

[@radarking9857]

You are doing a great job with these videos. Your theories are well thought out, reasonable and rational. Thanks for taking the time to produce them.

[@fraukatze3856]

The sand would absorb the water, making it even heavier. Adding that was crazy. Was this done on the sister building, Champlain Towers North? I notice a number of other buildings have been evacuated in the wake of CTS, but CTN is not one of them. Would be easy to check.

[@jeffostroff]

We don't know if they did the same there or not.

[@lindsaywright730]

@@jeffostroff thanks for all the time and effort you put into these videos, you are very much appreciated just so you know

[@garyc39]

In my opinion they only evacuated where poor people live.

[@fraukatze3856]

@@garyc39 Quite possible, I don’t live anywhere nearby (but I do live in a condo.)

[@fraukatze3856]

@@tripplefives1402 But not if the sand is on top of a waterproof cover. It would drain slower than plain water would.

[@stephen5147]

Your investigative tenacity is impressive.

[@bustedknucklegarage-tommy1507]

I do agree that everything you have discovered during your analysis contributed to the building’s overall weakness and only needed a trigger to start the collapse

[@Mikefngarage]

So if there was more shear wall or support beams under the building portion of the parking structure would it still have fallen.......I am missing something here.

[@centralartsmedia]

The craziest thing to me is if anyone accidently hit one of those columns at the bottom of the ramp it could have taken the building down with it.

[@allanhwhite.kineticmobiles]

@@centralartsmedia If you check with any actual Structural Engineer they will explain in tons of detail why that would NOT happen. A car driven into a concrete column would NOT take a building down.

[@okaydetar821]

@@allanhwhite.kineticmobiles He didn't say hit with a car.

[@allanhwhite.kineticmobiles]

@@okaydetar821 Exactly what are you saying? In your opinion could you hit a single column with anything and collapse an entire building ?

[@pamfrank3962]

I think you have made a valid point about the additional weight added to the structure when homeowners remideled...its staggering when you showed the visual..it had to have affected the stability...especially when you multiply ✖ the units remodeled. Unbelievable and eye opening 😳

[@spoddie]

I lived in an old building that has very solid construction, however I have wooden floors. I'm going to do a kitchen renovation and you've impressed upon the importance of floor loading.

[@bewell4743]

I would not have used the word "trivia" at the end. It gently taps at trivializing something that you've shown absolute respect and tremendous generosity in explaining. Outstanding work! Thank you. 💛 ⚘

[@joshuakhaos4451]

Got to say, I've enjoyed your content covering this whole incident from the beginning. You have put in serious detective work on this tragic event, And I think you have probably nailed what all caused this to happen.

[@tonitokarz4359]

You’re welcome Jeff. You have a fantastic voice and your videos are very informative. I too work in the concrete and drain business for over twenty years and I have learned more from your videos about concrete than I have working for my employer. Keep up the great work.

[@jeffostroff]

Thanks 👍

[@gobbletegook]

Dam...I would never even have thought about all of that weight that the tile and granite would add to that building. It would be nice if there were photos or brochures available from when they first marketed and sold them to see that comparison with carpet or vinyl floors as you said. Also, love your voice buddy. You remind me of radio announcers I grew up with (in the 80's) on cool jazz stations!

[@randelmalavida]

Excellent work in making sense out of this tragic catastrophic event. The modern renovations, with the luxury materials you pointed out is an incredible aspect to consider. As the columns look like toothpicks to begin with, that with all that heavy load above the original supports, if not ever revised to compensate the new loads combined with water damage in the in the already stressed garage area is a revelation, in my opinion, of great significance and should be calculated to know how much it factors in relation to the threshold of the max bearing supports with the weakened structure and the new value of a reduction of the threshold. If that it is a factor to this failure then any buildings in similar situations need to reevaluate their calculations from the original plans to see if the new values supersedes the max load threshold. thank You much respect to you. Randy Chavez

[@mlchampion]

Jeff would you possibly start looking into the north tower and the work they are doing over there to determine if it’s structure is at risk as well? I really find your analysis and explanations excellent and would love to see your opinion over there. -Mary

[@Roger_Gadd]

A long time ago I took some structural engineering courses as part of university degree. This video and others on the same topic are extremely educational. Up until recently, I never countenanced that anyone would even consider some of the design and modification practices apparent in this building.

[@lindap.p.1337]

The planters may have been weighty and added to the problems, but I agree that is not the root cause. Do you think anyone can be held accountable after all these years?

[@lifejourney48]

Thank you for all your hard work on this video and thank for the pages to help the people out thank you again

[@DR-nh6oo]

I have for some time been wondering about the safety of marble kitchens, bathrooms, dressing rooms and floor tiles being added to apartments in high rise complexes all over the world

[@bruce5799]

some high value miami condos are 50 to 60 floors

[@adamarlem9863]

💯actually problematic, all porous, very heavy, slippery, etc.

[@ayuse01]

Interior decorations is a negligible added weight for a concrete superstructure. The margins of safety are way above this load.

[@carolbell8008]

Doe the building designer and concrete mixer take that into consideration I wonder?

[@adamarlem9863]

@@ayuse01 no

[@joeportuese708]

I've been following these videos from the start, and i have to say you've done a great job explaining and outlining specifics. I keep looking forward to the next video... great work bud!

[@tracyd1233]

You are my "go-to" channel for excellent explanations of potential causes for this tragedy. I also find your voice very soothing. I was laughing at your disgust over the "gramma" 1980's home design--formica and those plastic thingies hiding the florescent lights, coil stove, ugly wire shelves, and carpet--yup--that's what I have circa 1984. If you were on the Gulf Coast--you'd be my "go-to" guy for remodel.

[@jeffostroff]

Thanks Tracy!

[@bartricky5894]

LOL I remember all that and if you go back a few more years you would find burnt orange shag carpet.

[@robertamorrison3462]

I really appreciate the work you're putting into this series of videos. It's really interesting to have an understanding of what might have caused this tragedy.

[@jeffostroff]

Thanks Roberta!

[@brianmurphy5245]

thanks, Construction Engineering & Failure Analysis

[@jplattet]

That dude was on this a long while ago. Honestly? If it were me I'd have given attribution to that theory. There's no reason not to.

[@peterkinge4461]

Great video, your analysis makes perfect sense to the layman, appreciate you spending so much time on it and sharing. Peace x

[@kathybrown8026]

Also makes no sense that many buildings shook in Miami when the earthquake happened in Cuba and elsewhere in January of 2020! Major shaking took place and the buildings were evacuated but yet no one has mentioned that as a possible contributing factor! However if the shaking had an effect on the building in Surfside then stress that was already occuring would have been exacerbated to put it mildly! So that would seem to be another causal factor!

[@lindsaywright730]

dont have to remind me , The Cayman islands were at the epicenter, 7.7 magnitude , our swimming pool turned into a washing machine. it lasted about two minutes , surprisingly other than a couple of sink holes we all did ok but now I am wondering about the Tunnel that Mr Dart built sigh

[@garyc39]

good analysis

[@cathyclark6652]

What if it was as much as 1.5M downgrade like they did with yesterdays quake in Alaska? - you raise a very good point! Then they underestimate the possible damage - that is why USGS needs an immediate audit of their data that they let the public see!

[@kathybrown8026]

@@cathyclark6652 Correct! Because if tremors and earthquakes can effect buildings built on the Miami coast that already have damage from water and chlorine and high water levels, storm damage, sand beds instead of rock beds then many buildings are in jeopardy possibly! We need to know for peoples safety whether this is an additional threat to high rises , condos, or any other building in that area! When buildings have been through this in addition to storm damages and such there is bound to be some damage and with the building having settled over time as well then the differential stress on the building would be worse during an earthquake or storm situation than it would during regular times and since settling doesnt occur evenly it makes the building less sound over time! All these things must be evaluated and changes made to design as well as where a building can be and how high it can be and such when built on sand ! Also what the video said about the heavier materials added to the building over time without regard for weight and apparently not engineered but done as just a home remodel to a single story dwelling!

[@denicehaley9902]

Thank you, Jeff, for an easy to understand explanation of a very tragic, unfortunate tragedy that could have been prevented.

[@bctesla]

outstanding production jeff

[@MrBeachwaves]

Thank you for your hard work. Incredible! Has anyone officially investigating reached out to to you?

[@RTannamal]

Holy crap when I wanted to have a water bed in the military dorms they made me go through a civil engineering study and figure out how many pounds per square inch it would be on a ground floor room in an already condemned barracks.....because even if the building is condemned, the military will put servicemen in it.

[@designstudio8013]

PSF live load of water bed.

[@kakel536]

@@designstudio8013 The engineers would have factored that in... Obviously someone, down the line, decided to shortcut.

[@jawoody9745]

A good analysis, Jeff. I've been watching everything you post about this tragedy.

[@sallyturner1669]

To my untrained eye, I’ve seen pictures of the deck that appear to be angled down away from the pool or sloped. You can see stains in the pavers also.

[@markwonders3485]

Jeff - Thanks for another great video! I really appreciate your ability to analyze each new piece of evidence that comes to light, while being cautious to not overstate its significance before all the facts are in. My one suggestion is that maybe it's time to do a sort of "roundup" video of what we know so far, how the facts interrelate, and what important facts remain to be learned. I've got to admit that the jump from palm trees last time to the deck resurfacing this time was a little jarring, although on reflection they both relate to the same two key issues: what circumstances may have compromised the strength of the deck and columns, and how much weight were they being asked to bear. But for me at least, a look at how the pieces of the puzzle fit together (so far) would be welcome at this point.

[@aday1637]

Jeff, I respectfully submit that your drawing doesn't show the reason for the beam under the flower box/planter....the building actually juts out at that point, in that area and is supported by that beam. The beam was not to support the planter. What collapsed first was the outside deck which took that beam along with it and then the jut-out came down shortly afterwards. All this happened in a progressive manner. Once that facade came down it brought the outside wall along with it which then progressed to the rest of the structure. Sort of like dominoes.

[@SnickasBah]

Makes sense. Like your style and delivery. I keep thinking about how ugly and discolored those pool deck pavers were. If they had only undid that project earlier.

[@rentechpad]

My question is about the shear walls, maybe we have more code requirements here due to having to deal with seismic activity, but they are also supposed to help a building stay upright in high wind situations, I believe. Now while neither of those caused this collapse, building codes in seismic areas often require shear walls in more places then I seem to see them on the plans that you show. In this area the idea of shear wall are that if a great enough earthquake occurs that the building starts to collapse it will only collapse to the shear wall, and we see that in this collapse the shear walls at least in part of the building did stay up even though the forces were enough to sheer away floors and walls when the pool deck collapsed and then those pulled down other parts of the building. It seems like if they had placed, as out codes would mandate a shear wall in the area behind the lobby running east-west, when the pool deck went it might have taken down the front of the building that did fall first and then have stopped allowing the back part of the center section to remain as well as the eastern side of the building. It just seems to be that the plans did not have the shear walls that should have been placed that would have stopped so much of the building from falling instead of just normal walls that could not bear the load and fell forward towards the pool deck and pulled down by the from when it fell. I just wonder if this was a design flaw of sorts as probably code there does not anticipate seismic issues, just hurricanes. I also have to wonder, when you showed some of the major renovations that were carried out in many of these units - to renovate do they not need permits and does not the city and/or the HOA have a say as to what can be done or materials used for renovation taking into considerations of what the units were rated for in weight and calculate how much more weight can even be added to a unit, or in that area is there not too much oversite in this way. I actually went and looked at some other real estate photos from units for sale or sold before the collapse that has been renovated before the sale or going on the market and actually saw one where all the carpet was removed and marble was put down pretty much throughout the unit making me think that with all marble floors, as well as countertop, bigger and heavier appliances as well as solid wood cabinets that that unit may have come close to adding almost a ton to that floor. I suppose someone calculated whether the building could hold that and not crash down into the unit below, but if you had many units that were at or slightly over their weight limit (not to mention heavy furnishings) once the building was unstable would that extra weight not tend to pull the building over if one side of the unit lost support?

[@sherrypriem4452]

Jeff, that side view really helped in the understanding of the layout!! THANK YOU!! The weight of the water on the pool deck was a major problem, heavy tiles, sand, drain in improper area. All of the heavy materials used in individual upgrades of the condos, all I think were major contributing factors. Those columns were never intended for that kind of weight originally. Also, the parking garage ceiling slab had a "belly" and buckled under the weight of the marble, sand, roof tiles and undrained water. Was like an elephant standing on "toothpick" legs in knee deep water for 40 years. So sad.... My deepest sympathies to the families.

[@stephenrickstrew7237]

Great point about all the extra weight of the marble Tiles etc… I wonder how many extra kilotons of improvements they had slapped on …. Nice Lobby , ugly and scary and ultimately deadly parking garage …!

[@philf4086]

Jeff - we'll learn in time what really caused this. I think you are on the right track. It's really nice that you mention the Surfside condo aid organizations right up front - not burying at the end like some accounts might do.

[@vgernyc]

I think your 2 theories are actually the whole explanation. Excellent sleuthing on figuring out what happened.

[@jeffostroff]

Thanks!

[@flgirl250]

I just subscribed to your channel. I’ve been watching your videos all along on the Champlain collapse. After watching THIS video, it makes sense why this has happened. I know nothing about building structure, I do have common sense. You are an intelligent man. I will agree with you with the weight of the remodels…we’re they built to support all the marble, granite and so on? Probably not! I purchased my home here in Florida, gutted the entire home, learned so much from my contractor when I designed my home of what I could do and not do. I wonder how many officials, attorneys etc; have watched your videos. Thank you so much for sharing and your time as well.

[@kingoghearts1]

Excellent remember , if that planter was still together and hit the column mid way between floor and ceiling it would be like someone giving you a shot in the back of the knee as you stood there with all your weight on that one leg , it would buckle rather easily because floor or ceiling would offer no support , that column was never engineered to be smacked sideways , one went , seven minutes later the rest followed . I still want to know why no fire alarm sounded when the sprinkler pipes broke . Was it a wet system and they turned off the water because of the water collecting in pool , did the think the water was from leaking sprinkler system ?

[@fredb2022]

Thank you to our host. This is one of your best presentations. Learned a lot

[@gregoryagogo]

2:56 If I was building it I think I would have made the building separate from the pool deck, instead of being one continuous slab. Just seems to me that the building should have more support separate from that pool deck.

[@billj5645]

This would typically not be done because it introduces a lot of significant problems that have to be solved. Nobody ever expects a pool deck to collapse so there would be no incentive to build the pool deck separately.

[@JasonFlorida]

@@billj5645 until now

[@gregoryagogo]

@@billj5645 I'm sure we will learn from this, as we always do from something tragic like this.

[@gregoryagogo]

@Michael David Caprarella those beams do seem too skinny for all that height/weight.

[@antoniettegiancola1636]

Hi Jeff, just wanted to say you have an amazing voice, I could listen to you all night long..love the videos about the surfside condo collapse :)

[@jeffostroff]

Wow, thank you!

[@takethehighroad5027]

@jeffostroff what about the extra weight from the penthouse? as that was added at later date so it would have put more weight on the support collums

[@Hallahanify]

A fact that is never brought up when people talk about housing getting expensive that you illustrate so beautifully in this video. Finishings have gotten much more elaborate, and square footage was much lower in the past

[@mcachat1]

Jeff, I can’t believe that the fire alarm that triggered the 911 call did not set an audible alarm off in the building. Typically when a fire sprinkler has water flow like it showed in the tourist video it’s sets off the fire alarm. However in this case why didn’t it set off an audible alarm for the residents? That could have saved countless lives!

[@mcachat1]

@@brnmcc01 thanks for that comment. I didn’t know that.

[@PrinceBlake]

The physics professor who took the video of the garage pointed to her parking space and noted '17' at the moment she filmed the location where the collapse would initiate (3:59). If an electron can be said to have a core then '17' would be a good marker for it in the subatomic model of time's arrow known as '935-QKK'. The alignment of expanding intervals 3,5 and 9 form an alignment seen from top down as '9-3-5' and centered on 3. The sum of 9, 3 and 5 is 17 and is suggested by the first unusual alignment seen within the model's core as the southbound extension after 5 is followed by 11 and 17 suggesting the truism that 9+3+5 = 17. 935 is also the sum of the object's cross intervals up to and including the intersection with the orbital path of 48 intervals. The 'cross' represents the ever-expanding path and the 'orbit' represent the intersection of expanding and orbital paths where new paths are born. The perigee (point of closest return) between the two paths offers an explanation for the dipole nature of all subatomic particles. The model was born in 1981 the same year The Police's Ghost in the Machine was released, an album whose song 'Secret Journey" mirrored attempts to explain the revelations that occurred in Math class after a night of prayer. Stunning images of Man and Pi also appeared that same year adding fuel to the mystery. At the 9:35 mark Jeff begins, "When this building was built in 1981 and they figured static loads and dynamic loads, they were loads based on the way they were building...at that time. But what about all the changes that have been made over time?" In physics, the very flow of time cannot be separated, isolated away from the particles in it. The universe is a product of time and the history of changes that have brought our corner of the universe about. Thanks to Jeff and Ms. Tirenzi we are edging ever closer to an understanding of the importance of time. You might recall only a few years ago many physicists were ready to discount time as a mere illusion. My hope is we realize this dipole moment is effectively the glue that holds this entire house called our universe together and it was mapped out largely in 1981 the same year Champlain was built and Ghost in the Machine was released. I am by nature a skeptic. I demand evidence which is why I find Jeff's work here really good. I hope I have presented a pathway for reasonable people to investigate and allow them to trust their instincts and the things their surroundings are telling them.

[@joelnoland9931]

ran into a Surfside official and he told me the day before the collapse a AC contractor was on the roof with a Concrete saw doing a retrofit and they accidentally cut some tension cables in the concrete ?? This did not bring the building down but if you start looking at the big picture this building was in horrible shape !!! and had multiple issues all over from top to bottom and was in dire need of structural repair and reinforcement !!!

[@jocelinformicola1096]

You put so much work into this 👌🏼 good job 👏🏼🙌🏼!!!

[@Mickt6]

seems like nobody noticed but there was a security camera top left of the garage enterance but it also seems that we cannot get access to any of the building cam recordings probably locked up

[@SurgeDashcam]

I hope CCTV footage starts being released soon.

[@SandrineVoxServices]

Salut. Probably part of the sealed evidence part of the ongoing investigation...

[@annabananna44]

Great job Jeff. Greatly appreciate you taking the time to work this out for everyone.

[@jeffostroff]

Glad to help Ann!

[@skipstalforce]

Look at how clean that rebar is in the garage, it ripped out so cleanly. AN inch and quarter is not deep enough for that rebar. I still believe that the beam under the planter caused the critical failure of the one of the parameter columns by rotation. It opened the top of that column like a can opener. Had those beams not been there the building might very well still be standing.

[@xXExtremeGameXx]

Morning Jeff. I'm over in the UK and have found your videos on Champlain Towers fascinating. What you are suggesting I think is bang on looking at all the evidence. BTW I take it your a car guy looking at the GT40 and the Lambo behind you?

[@jonbarnard7186]

Thanks for all these informative videos Jeff. One question. There is an interview with the caretaker who says it was common to have knee deep water in the garage. Do you think It's possible that this much water could leak through the slab? Or was there another source of flooding?

[@lorak14]

Love your videos and your knowledge on the matter. Thanks for sharing!

[@petercofrancesco9812]

Usually the cause is simple. They neglected fixing a know issue of water drainage problem with the deck. But most people are only concerned with cosmetic repairs and saving money. Sounds like there was long list of triggers. The added weight of the water in the sand and marble tiles didn't help but would have held if wasn't subjected to decades of neglect.

[@lindap.p.1337]

You got that right…..decades of neglect.

[@nofurtherwest3474]

Could this ever happen to a regular 2 story house? I'm guessing there is not enough weight to cause a collapse unless of course there is a lot of corrosion at the foundation.

[@ayuse01]

@@nofurtherwest3474 Remove the concrete that support your house and it will collapse.

[@Mikefngarage]

BUT IMO should there have been more support under the building portion.....WHERE is the shear wall or large beams between columns under the building portion of the parking structure. I DONT SEE THEM on the plans or on the pictures. Should a Weak deck be allowed to pull down a building. Something is SERIOUSLY wrong here.....

[@ayuse01]

@@Mikefngarage The building that kept standing had significant bigger columns too..

[@ewechewed]

Between you & Building Integrity I feel part of this citizen investigation from the other side of the world. Great engineering analysis by you guys to work out the likely point of failure. Too bad the garage & pool deck areas weren't structurally isolated instead of the failure being able to propagate from there to the building. And I'm pleased to see you've addressed one thing no one else seems to have mentioned - the extra weight from unit renovations within the building. I live in a 1970s 40-unit high-rise in Manly Sydney Australia, and as the sole Engineer have to question the structural implications of complete refit renovations in almost every unit (24x2br & 16x3br) in our building. The potential overloading that concerns me most is the replacement of carpet with massively heavy tiled floors (systems, when you include underfloor heating), together with suspended ceilings, throughout. Alone, each case might be OK. But the cumulative effect if/when 8 units do so on top of each other has me worried - especially now the building is almost 50 years old (& required magnesite removal after 30). So with this concern in mind I searched & found the real estate sites for properties advertised (for sale or rent) in Champlain Towers South. See: www.miamicondoinvestments.com/champlain-towers-south-condos#!closed-sales www.bestofluxuryrealty.com/Surfside/Champlain-Towers-Condos-Sold-&-Pending Lo & behold, as expected, many have been renovated with lots of marble (or similar) on floors, walls, bench-tops, in kitchens, bathrooms, & throughout. The extra weight must have been substantial compared to that of the few more-original units I could see. Internals were a lot less weighty when this building was designed & built. So could the cumulative effect of this extra renovated-weight also have been a significant factor in this case? And more universally, could this become an elephant in the room?

[@benjohnson8175]

Why was the pool deck connected to the building? Seems like a dumb design choice since the collapsing deck damaged those columns that brought down the rest of the building. Shouldn't the pool deck be separate from the building?

[@coldwaterjimmy7044]

Thank you so much for the time & effort that you have spent & continue with your structural analysis in laymans terms. It is truly appreciated!

[@pizzafrenzyman]

I love your videos so much that I set the speed to .25