More buildings evacuated in South Florida one month after Surfside condo collapse

MIAMI (NewsNation Now) — The deadly Surfside condo collapse in South Florida is still creating problems for that area as many families living in the surrounding communities remain evacuated from their homes.

Engineers and city officials removed people from some properties to check the structural integrity of the buildings, but many are wondering if they’ll ever get to go back home.

“I’m four months pregnant and I was not expecting to be we kicked out of my apartment,” said Christina Mora, who lives at Crestview Towers in North Miami Beach.

She rented a Uhaul after she was told Tuesday she had just a few hours to get all of her stuff out of her apartment. Other neighbors also packed up after city engineers said the building is structurally unsafe.

“I am happy to be out because, you know, I don’t want to die,” Mora said. “I don’t want my family to die. I have a family on the fifth floor.”

So far, eight buildings, many with hundreds of residents, have either had mandatory or voluntary evacuations over the last month.

Many of the problem buildings are due for their 40-year recertification, which is why the issues were discovered.

“Neglect, I mean, that’s the short of it,” said James LaGreca, with LaGreca Consultants. “People don’t understand that buildings need maintenance. “

LaGreca is a consultant who works with condo boards on maintenance projects.

“Every building starts to deteriorate from the moment it’s built,” LaGreca said. “There’s a lifecycle with all materials and all construction. In certain areas of the world the life cycle is shortened because of the elements. South Florida is a tough environment for these buildings.”

LaGreca said he has been very busy since the Surfside collapse. He says a lot of condo boards that were wanting to put off work before have now decided to get that construction work done immediately.