On June 24th, at 1:25 AM the Champlain towers south located in the town of surfside collapsed dramatically. The reason behind this collapse was still unknown, but after spending a lot of hours reviewing drawings, collapse pictures as well as reading through the news article, it was possible to potentially point out the reason behind this collapse.

I will not dig into the non-related issue like water proofing and concrete spalling of balconies as that has not contributed to the collapse, neither was there a sinkhole. The primary reason is the concrete pool deck damage and its collapse.

This video will help you understand the collapse sequence as well as what does a structural engineer think when we see such kind of damage in an exposed pool deck slab prior to the collapse.

The residents reported constant water penetration issue into the garage from the pool deck. The pool deck was always distressed which was one of the first element that collapsed. So today we will look into the collapse sequence and ask why, what and how did this building collapsed.

If I am going too fast, feel free to ask me the questions in the comments and I will be happy to answer or even provide additional information.

Credits for Parking Garage video:    • Video shows moments before building c...  
Credits for the Parking Garage Walkthrough:    • Champlain Tower South underground gar...  

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