EVENT DETAIL

The ACI Greater Michigan Chapter, together with our co-hosts ASCE, ICRI, and SEAMi, and our meeting sponsor Wiss, Janney, Elstner and Associates invite you to join us Tuesday, May 9, 2023, for a presentation on The Champlain Towers South Collapse in Surfside, Florida.

In the early morning hours of June 24th, 2021, the eastern half of the 12-story Champlain Towers South Condominiums collapsed, killing 98 residents of the 40-year-old building in Surfside, Florida. The collapse was initiated by punching shear failures of the flat plate slab supporting the pool deck above an underground garage. Six to ten minutes later, three columns on the south face of the L-shaped building failed near their base, and the eastern half of the building collapsed. The western half of the building survived but was subsequently demolished.

Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc. (WJE) was retained by the condominium association to determine the cause of the collapse. WJE was one of several teams that investigated the collapse. WJE’s scope included review of design and construction records; review of videos and photographs taken before, during, and after the collapse; testing of construction materials and subsurface conditions (in coordination with the involved parties); structural analyses; and review of relevant codes and standards. One of WJE’s principal investigators, Dr. Matthew Fadden will describe our investigation and summarizes the findings.

Matt will go into additional detail regarding the structural aspects of the Champlain Towers South Condominiums collapse. This will touch on the importance of identifying, evaluating, and correcting punching shear deficiencies in flat plate slab construction. He will also touch on retrofits for strengthening slab/column regions where deficiencies have been identified.