{"id":10220,"date":"2023-09-05T00:55:16","date_gmt":"2023-09-05T00:55:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/edmontondailynews.com\/?p=10220"},"modified":"2023-09-05T00:55:16","modified_gmt":"2023-09-05T00:55:16","slug":"fears-of-building-collapse-prompt-plea-to-evacuate-north-edmonton-condo-building-edmonton","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/edmontondailynews.com\/fears-of-building-collapse-prompt-plea-to-evacuate-north-edmonton-condo-building-edmonton\/","title":{"rendered":"Fears of building collapse prompt plea to evacuate north Edmonton condo building – Edmonton"},"content":{"rendered":"

More than five months after a fire damaged a condominium building in northwest Edmonton, an investigation by an engineering firm has revealed the building was not constructed properly to begin with and could collapse at any moment \u2014 so residents are being urged to leave immediately.<\/p>\n

On March 12, a fire broke out at the Castledowns Pointe condo building (12618 152 Ave.), located in the Baranow neighbourhood in the Castle Downs area.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\"The<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\tThe fire damage to Castledowns Pointe condo building (12618 152 Ave.) in northwest Edmonton on March 12, 2023.\t\t\t\t<\/span> <\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tGlobal News\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

In the aftermath, structural engineers from Read Jones Christoffersen Ltd. (RJC) were hired to inspect the fire-damaged portion of the building, a letter to residents from property manager Simco Management explained (scroll down to read the full letter.)<\/p>\n

Story continues below advertisement<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring their May 2023 review, RJC discovered that the actual construction of the fire-damaged portion of the building was not the same as the engineered drawings on file, and that the as-built conditions were under-designed to carry the structural load of the building,\u201d the Sept. 1 letter stated.<\/p>\n

That led to questions about whether the non-fire damaged parts of the building also had the same issues and a deeper investigation was launched in mid-August, after an initial report was received from RJC.<\/p>\n

The property manager said that investigation included opening up areas of drywall to get a deeper look at the framing and construction.<\/p>\n

The engineers released a follow-up report on Aug. 30, which revealed troubling news about state of the building.<\/p>\n

The building manager summarized the grim findings in its letter to residents.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe report of the structural engineers advises that under certain conditions, all or a portion of the building could fail structurally (i.e. collapse),\u201d the management company said, adding it had an ethical obligation to share the findings with the City of Edmonton, which it said it did on Aug. 31.<\/p>\n

Simco said it has been in touch with the city and is waiting on an official response \u2014 and while no formal order has been issued by the municipality, \u201cit is our expectation that an evacuation order will be issued.\u201d<\/p>\n

Story continues below advertisement<\/p>\n

In the meantime, residents were told over the long weekend they should not wait.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is the recommendation of RJC that due to the potential life safety issue, that the remaining residents vacate the building as soon as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kelly-Anne Durand has owned a unit in the building for 15 years \u2014 she initially bought it for her son but now lives in it herself.<\/p>\n

She said the building has also suffered water damage several times in the past, to the point all the pipes in the building were ripped out and replaced.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor my suite alone, they\u2019ve had to tear it apart and repair it three times because of floods,\u201d she said, adding her floors were replaced during that process \u2014 but more recently, she noticed the boards have been lifting.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey had all these nice floors in and I have, literally, stickers on my floors because they\u2019re all lifting and everything\u2019s moving. It\u2019s a lot recently and was kind of scary \u2014 but I never thought it was going to be this scary,\u201d Durand said.<\/p>\n

Durand received her copy of the letter from the management company on Saturday, informing her of structural issues she said she suspected existed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey told us we had to be out immediately. To pack a bag and leave and not wait until there\u2019s more information, that they are worried about the building collapsing,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Story continues below advertisement<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s terrifying what we\u2019ve been living in and it\u2019s (only) what they\u2019ve seen,\u201d Durand said, adding she fears there could be even more extensive water damage issues not yet discovered.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s scary and devastating.\u201d<\/p>\n

Durand added because the City of Edmonton has not yet ordered an official evacuation, she and other residents can\u2019t access help from the Red Cross.<\/p>\n

\n\t\tTrending Now<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n