MIAMI (WSVN) - A controlled demolition that was taking place in Miami’s Brickell section was put on hold after a heavy piece of debris fell onto the street below.
According to the City of Miami Fire Rescue, a slab of the building that was being demolished tumbled to the ground in the area of Brickell Avenue and Seventh Street, at around 2:40 p.m., Saturday.
“A concrete slab that was being demolished fell below, down to the floor and on the sidewalk,” said Miami Fire Rescue Lt. Pete Sanchez.
A cellphone video posted to social media by Only in Dade captured the moment that the slab came down.
“Fortunately, no one was below that, and no one was injured at the time,” said Sanchez.
Area residents were shocked by the sudden collapse.
“Wow, that was dangerous, that was crazy,” said Isabella Caetano as she watched the video of the collapse.
“Oh, my God, that’s terrifying, actually. That’s really scary,” said Stephanie Slesinger.
Fire crews and building inspectors rushed to the site.
“We devised a plan, and we worked together with the demolition company, and they removed all the unstable concrete slabs safely, and now the work has been stopped indefinitely,” said Sanchez.
Despite no one being hurt, those who live in the area are calling on city leaders to make sure this never happens again.
“The city needs to do more to keep us safe that – if you’ve seen the growth in Brickell in the last four to five years, it’s been an incredible explosion, and there’s an obligation to keep us safe,” said Slesinger.
As the cause of the collapse remains under investigation, authorities said Southeast Seventh Street is closed to westbound traffic from Brickell Avenue until about midway to the Southeast 90th block.
The demolition has been paused until a safer plan is put into motion.
“On Monday, the building department and all the entities involved, they’re going to be meeting to develop a new safety plan in order to continue and complete this demolition,” said Sanchez.
During the emergency meeting on Monday morning, authorities will learn more details as to what safety measures, if any, were in place at the time of the collapse.
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