Surfside condominium collapse, Condominium collapse in Surfside, Florida, US
The Surfside condominium collapse was the sudden partial failure of Champlain Towers South, a 12-story residential building in Surfside, Florida, just north of Miami. A large section of the building fell in the early hours of June 24, 2021, killing 98 people.
Champlain Towers South was built in the late 1970s as a beachfront residential building. Over the following decades, saltwater exposure, corrosion, and later modifications that did not follow the original design gradually weakened the structure.
The collapse prompted a wide debate about the condition of older coastal buildings across Florida. The site is now being redeveloped into a new luxury building, which has divided the local community.
The site is located on Collins Avenue in Surfside and is visible from the street, where a new building is now under construction. There is no formal memorial on the exact spot, but a nearby remembrance space has been established for those who wish to pay their respects.
An engineer had flagged serious damage to the building three years before it fell, but no effective repairs were made in time. The pool deck sat at street level directly over the parking garage, an unusual arrangement that investigators say played a role in how the failure spread.
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