Photo: Getty Images
A chief building official for the town of Surfside reportedly told residents the Champlain Towers South condominium was "in very good shape" one month after an engineer's report flagged the building for "major structural damage."
An email obtained by the Miami Herald showed Ross Prieto, who resigned from his post last year, reviewed the engineer's report after being forward a copy from condo board member Mara Chouela two days prior.
An email posted on the town's website revealed Chouela sent Prieto two reports: the "structural field survey report conducted by engineer Frank Morabito of Morabito Consultants in October 2018 and a mechanical and electrical engineering report by Thomas E. Henz. P.E.
Additionally, Chouela introduced Prieto at a meeting with five of the seven board members, which was also attended by property manager Alexandria Santamaria, condo board lawyer Marilyn Perez and condominium residents interested in participating in the building's recreation room.
Records released Sunday showed Prieto sent an email to then-town manager Guillermo Olmedillo on the morning after the meeting to report it "went very well" and that "the response was very positive from everyone in the room," adding that he was impressed with the proactive approach of the condo association to its upcoming required 40-year recertification, the Herald reports.
Prieto told the Herald last Saturday (June 26) that he didn't remember receiving the report or recall the email from Chouela, who also shared cost estimates for the repair work during the conversation.
Prieto claimed he was unaware that the town had received the report, which detailed flaws to the building nearly three years prior to Thursday's (June 24) deadly partial collapse.
“I don’t know anything about it,” Prieto said. “That’s 2018.”
The structural field survey conducted by Morabito revealed evidence of "major structural damage" to the concrete slab below the pool deck and "abundant" cracking and crumbling of the columns, beams and walls of the parking garage under the building, the New York Times reports.
The field survey led to plans for a multimillion-dollar repair project that was scheduled to begin soon -- more than two and a half years after the building managers received a warning -- prior to the collapse on Thursday.
The complex's management association had disclosed some of the problems following the incident on Thursday, but the full nature of the concrete and rebar damage was not made public until the 2018 report was released by city officials on Friday (June 25).
“Though some of this damage is minor, most of the concrete deterioration needs to be repaired in a timely fashion,” the consultant, Frank Morabito, wrote about damage to the building in the 2018 report.
Morabito didn't give any indication that the structure was at risk of collapse, but did note that it needed repairs in order to maintain "the structural integrity" of the building and its 136 condos.
Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava confirmed at least nine people have died and a total of 152 individuals are unaccounted for in relation to the partial collapse of the Champlain Towers South Condo, a 12-story Surfside condominium, in the Surfside town of Miami-Dade County as of Monday (June 28), CNN reports.
Officials told NBC Miami that residents were being moved to the Surfside Community Center and all streets in the area of the collapse were closed.
The Champlain Towers South Condos are located at 8777 Collins Avenue and were built in 1981.