Structural engineers who inspected the broken walkway after the balcony collapse at University Village apartments in Columbia, Missouri reported that the concrete had deteriorated to the point where it could no longer support its own weight. And indeed our balcony collapse attorneys point out that the initial report of the collapse came in during the wee hours of the morning as an apartment resident looked outside to see what a strange noise was and noticed that the unoccupied balcony walkway had begun to sag and fall. The walkway further collapsed as firefighters attempted to warn residents of the danger. Firefighter Lieutenant Bruce Britt died in the collapse.
Investigators said that water, chlorides, and freeze-thaw action had combined to deteriorate the concrete over time. And the evidence from the site indicated concrete shear, a sudden vertical failure. The investigating structural engineers’ report indicated that the metal deck, support beams, and concrete slab were all significantly deteriorated. And that parts of the concrete slab were delaminated because the concrete didn’t settle completely when it was put in. This would have left excess air inside the slab, which creates areas of potential weakness.
The aged apartment building where the balcony collapsed was part of an old complex built several decades ago. Inspections found immediate needs for repair and replacement of walkways at several other buildings. Inspectors said framing of some walkways was “questionable” and that there was imminent danger of catastrophic collapse.
Records show that about $4,000 was spent last summer on repairing two sections of concrete at the building where the collapse occurred. Plans were drawn up several years ago in 2008 regarding repair or replacement of the University Village buildings. That plan said that the walkways even then posed a hazard to public safety. (Ashley Jost, The Columbia Daily Tribune, 3/6/14)
The university plan went on to say that repair was not feasible given the age and condition of the complex: that tear down and replacement of the buildings was the only option. And an email of a UM official expressed concern about the deck repairs at the complex going back 5 to 10 years. (Elliot Weiler and Roche Madden, KTVI Fox 2, 3/5/14)
So basically the University of Missouri knew that there were safety hazards at the complex, specifically in the walkways, and that the only real fix would be to tear them down. But the university did not make that fix. Its budget went to other needs. The balcony collapse attorneys at Denena Points, PC emphasize that the school still chose to house students at the complex, when it could have at least closed down the complex and sent the students and their families to live at a place not in imminent danger of structural failures.
In a premises liability case when you or your loved ones have been injured because of a landlord’s negligence regarding the safety of those who might be on the property, you basically have to prove that:
Reports and documents coming to light in the University Village apartments case make it increasingly clear that the victim’s family could probably satisfy all of those elements of proof. But where the landlord defendant is a government entity like a state university rather than a private party, holding them financially accountable for the needless injuries and losses inflicted by the negligence might present some special challenges.
For example, victims and their families in Philadelphia are frustrated with the government agency responsible for structural safety there after a building collapse that killed 6 and injured or maimed 13. The department of Licenses and Inspections (L&I) won’t release (or can’t locate) relevant information about building collapses across the city. Attempts to gather the information have been met with stonewalling and/or denials that the information even exists. So attempts to hold the agency and the city liable for the harm inflicted by safety lapses that they might attribute in part to L&I are falling flat. And the city has already claimed sovereign immunity. Click the link to read more about the ongoingPhiladelphia building collapse controversy.