Hurricane Wilma- Older buildings in Broward take big hit, with at least 2,323 deemed unsafe

sun sentinel ^ | November 3 2005 | Jean-Paul Renaud, Shannon O'Boye and Linda Kleindienst

[dennisw]

The number of homes broken by Hurricane Wilma swelled Wednesday, as state officials blamed an older building code for the severe damage to Broward County apartment complexes, mobile homes and businesses.

State officials have surveyed Wilma's damage in South Florida and said the major problems were in structures built before Hurricane Andrew sparked tougher codes.

"The damage was in older and weaker buildings," said Rick Dixon, executive director of the Florida Building Commission in Tallahassee. "Remember, this is the first time that area has been hit directly in some time. ... They will have to be redone to meet the new standards."

South Florida revamped its building standards after Hurricane Andrew devastated portions of Miami-Dade County in 1992.

Broward emergency management officials said Wednesday that so far, there were 1,344 structures red-tagged or deemed unsafe because of damage caused by Wilma. However, a South Florida Sun-Sentinel survey of local building departments showed the number of unsafe buildings is at least 2,323. That includes apartment complexes that may have multiple residences.

Cities responding to the newspaper survey said there were at least 4,922 individual houses, mobile homes, condominium units and rental apartments that should not be occupied because they were badly damaged by the Oct. 24 hurricane. Mobile homes made up 1,629 of the ruined residences. The county's emergency spokesman said an official count was not available because cities were still reporting on damaged buildings. "We're going to release the numbers when the numbers are finalized and not until then," said Carl Fowler, a spokesman with Broward's Emergency Management Agency.

[dennisw]

There are at least ten thousand homeless here who cannot return home until repairs are made. Which may take months. I visited a friend yesterday who lives on the 3rd floor, the top floor of a condominium building. The unit next to him is uninhabitable. The county has condemned it until roof repairs are made. The people there are living with relatives until ......

He was lucky.
Mobile homes here got demolished and other housing is gone for good. Needs rebuilding, not repairs.

[Paradox]

I noticed this too as I surveyed the damage. Older (Pre-Andrew code) homes sustained the most damage. Newer homes, or newer work on older homes (roofing) did much better.

[Tall_Texan]

My brother in Hollywood is looking to sell his home. He says all it received was gutter damage and some downed trees. He had been planning to relocate to Rhode Island long before Wilma hit and was quitting his job as of October 30th. Sad to say, but Wilma could turn into a real windfall for his property value if it is in as good condition as he thinks. Suddenly, there are plenty of people in South Florida looking for any place to live.

[dennisw]

At the same time there are other sellers whose homes and property have sustained damage. Thus delaying pending sales until it's resolved who will pay for the repairs. And what is the home's value now that the shade trees were toppled?

The real estate market is in chaos here. Sales are in limbo. I think your brother will be OK and *perhaps* make a little bit more from his house

[Travis McGee]

How is it around my old stomping grounds: Bahia Mar, Las Olas Blvd, the ICW up to about Commercial Blvd? How did the boats on the canals fare?

[dennisw]

How is it around my old stomping grounds: Bahia Mar, Las Olas Blvd, the ICW up to about Commercial Blvd? How did the boats on the canals fare?

Have not been there since the hurricane. I live on the Westside. 13 miles from the ocean. It sucks to drive there these days because many traffic lights are trashed ... resulting in backups. My electric was out for 8 days so I watched and heard very little news. I actually had to breakdown and buy the Sun Sentinel.

Police keep order as residents of North Miami (Broward was the same) line up to buy gasoline in Miami, Florida. US President George W. Bush visited areas battered by Hurricane Wilma in Florida, seeking to defuse criticisms of government relief efforts as four million people remained without electricity.(AFP/File/Robert Sullivan)

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