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KISSIMMEE, Fla. – Some 72 units in a three-story Central Florida condominium complex were deemed unsafe after a building inspection found the walkways leading to the condos were at risk of collapsing, officials said.
An engineering firm found some of the walkways at Images Condominiums in Kissimmee were “in danger of collapse,” Osceola County spokesperson Chris Brumbaugh told the Orlando Sentinel.
The finding comes a week after the Champlain Towers South in Surfside partially collapsed, killing 18 while the number of people still unaccounted for stands at 145.
Residents at the condominium complex were advised to enter the buildings at their own risk, the newspaper reported.
Property records showed the complex, which houses about 145 units, was built in 1990.
Jennifer Dodd returned to her unit Thursday afternoon to pick up family photos and clothes.
“It’s really shocking and it’s upsetting,” Dodd said.
She lives in one of the buildings deemed unsafe.
“To come home to this, it’s really sad for everybody,” she said. “And to not get answers as to what we need to do is hard.”
According to a county spokesperson, three buildings made up of 72 units were declared unsafe Wednesday morning.
News 6 obtained pictures of the structural damage from the Osceola County permit center. News 6 also obtained an email from an architecture firm that was hired by the condo association to make some repairs.
According to the email, which is dated on April 30, 2021, the firm found balcony floors that have cracked and settled in two of the buildings.
The email said they also found “significantly rotted wood framing and rotted plywood sub floor” under a concrete slab.
The firm wrote in the email that “these areas are unsafe and in danger of collapse.” The firm told the condo association the repairs could cost several hundred thousand dollars.
“We’re just not getting any straightforward answers as to what the actual problems are, so we don’t know how dangerous the situation is, how permanent it is. Are we talking about a week of repairs, a month?” Dodd said.
News 6 spoke to the architecture firm who said they sent the condo association a proposal for repairs, which was forwarded to the board, but they haven’t heard from the complex since then.
The firm said in light of the building collapse in south Florida, the structural engineer who checked out the buildings earlier this year alerted officials with Osceola County about the issues this week.
“I guess the county is trying to keep everyone out to stay safe, so we don’t have that happen here because nobody wants that,” Dodd said.
The county and Red Cross are assisting the residents, including providing temporary housing.
The county said the condo association will be responsible for making the repairs. News 6 saw crews at the complex on Thursday working on the buildings.
News 6 called and emailed the condo association for comment, but we haven’t heard back.
News 6 also requested the latest inspection report from the county and we’re waiting for a response.
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July 02, 2021 at 03:40AM
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Enter at own risk: 72 Kissimmee condos unsafe as walkways ‘in danger of collapse’ - WKMG News 6 & ClickOrlando
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