Pool deck at collapsed Florida condo building failed to comply with codes, standards, officials say

By DAVID FISCHER
Associated Press

MIAMI (AP) — Federal investigators say the swimming pool deck of a beachfront South Florida condominium that collapsed two years ago, killing 98 people, failed to comply with original building codes and standards. Investigators with the National Institute of Standards and Technology gave an update Thursday on the collapse of the Champlain Towers South building in Surfside, Florida. Among other factors, the investigators reported signs of corrosion, misplaced reinforcement and the placement of heavier and additional plant containers than those in the original plans. They say these factors led to “critically low margins against failure.” Experts have previously suggested problems with the pool deck might have led to the 40-year-old, 12-story building’s collapse, but the investigation is ongoing.