steveq

I have enquired.....

"Dunno" was his professional opinion.....
Adding
"Probably not, If just the foundations failed it might have sunk, but its possible the steel columns might still have buckled"
He adds:
"9/11 was in steel column buildings. Once the thing starts to move down, its likely the thing became unstoppable"
"Blowing out the lower columns is exactly how we drop a building with explosives"

Steerpike

Thanks for that great website link! From there, I was able to find several units for sale in the currently sinking SF Millennium tower!
https://www.highrises.com/san-franci...-tower-condos/
Most expensive one is $3.4 Million!

scrubbedexpat091

This building while having won awards for its look, has been a problem for residents including a major flood a few weeks ago.

They look nice inside, but I think they are rather small with a fairly poor layout overall for living.

https://www.realtor.ca/real-estate/2...reet-vancouver

Steerpike

A bit more info on the Millennium Tower in SF. It's known to be sinking and is at the early stages of a $100m+ emergency project to rebuild the foundations, to correct an 18" sinking and 14" leaning issue due to not running the foundations down to the bedrock. This link to Zillow reveals a 1,900 sq ft unit is on sale for $2.3m. The monthly dues are $2,000/mo. Insurance is estimated at $1,000/mo. There's no indication as to whether this includes any assessments for the $100m+ repairs, which are subject to tons of lawsuits (owners are suing developers; developers are suing the building across the street for 'disrupting their basement area'; I think the city are being sued for giving permits for an inappropriate design; and so on ...). And yet, sales are going ahead! Zillow indicates that 2 units sold in June, and 2 units sold in April, all for over $1m.

Giantaxe

Disclosure laws, as we both know, are pretty strict in California: all the sinking issues will have been disclosed to buyers. I haven't checked past sales, but I have read that units are selling at a discount. Some people presumably perceive a bargain: they're getting a discount and they have some probability that others will pick up the $100m tab for the foundation work. Given the building isn't particularly old and the problems have been known (and litigated) for a while, it's probably a reasonable assumption that the HOA won't get stuck for most of that money.

Giantaxe

The WTC pancaked from the top downwards, this clearly did the reverse. I guess the question is, assuming the failure was salt water corrosion of rebar'd concrete columns at the base of the building, whether steel columns would have likewise failed, all other things being equal?

Boomhauer

I-Beams are quite a lot thicker and you can notice the corrosion since it isn't encased in concrete. Steel buildings are a lot lighter, and you don't have all that concrete weighing down on each floor, but the floors may be pre-cast concrete slabs so don't know how much weight difference there is.

scrubbedexpat091

Crestview Towers, about seven miles north of the building that collapsed, has been deemed to be structurally and electrically unsafe by the city of North Miami Beach and ordered evacuated.

The building was built in 1972, the report by the engineer retained by the condo association is dated January 11, 2021, but was just submitted to the city today, the building despite being nearly 50 years old had not undergone the 40 year recertification inspection.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/07/02/us/no...sed/index.html

karenkaren1

another one almost on my doorstep. All July 4th fireworks cancelled. devastatingly sad here, so many bodies still unrecovered

RICH

Looks like they are going to demolish the rest of the building before the hurricane comes. That is a hell of a risk/benefit decision to have to make,

Jerseygirl

The rest of the condo complex has tonight been demolished

scrubbedexpat091

Does typical condo insurance cover things like a building collapsing for the unit owners?

karenkaren1

dont I know it. I am home with windows closed because of dust. been a subdued July 4th over here.

scrubbedexpat091

Hope the dust doesn't have any long term health issues for all you in the area, hopefully the city and state are honest and transparent about anything that might be harmful.

BEVS

I'm not surprised. Very difficult and sad all round.