DeSantis won’t commit to new review of Florida buildings after condo collapse

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) on Wednesday would not commit to taking new action to address Florida’s aging buildings in light of the collapse of the Champlain Towers South condominium in the Miami suburb of Surfside.

DeSantis, following a briefing on Tropical Storm Elsa, declined to say whether he supported stricter requirements for Florida buildings to be recertified, The Miami Herald reported.

“We obviously want to be able to identify why did this happen,” the Florida governor said.

“Is this something that was unique to this building? Is it something that was unique to the person that maybe developed it — because obviously there are sister properties? Is it something that buildings of that age, that would have implications beyond that whether southern Florida or the entire state of Florida? I think we need to get those definitive answers,” DeSantis said.

The Herald reported that DeSantis was asked about what impact this collapse would have on Florida’s condominium real estate market, as some experts are warning that the collapse will be a concern for future buyers.

“I can just say, just having talked with people who’ve been on the scene — people who’ve done stuff — I think this building had problems from the start, let’s just put it that way,” DeSantis replied.

On Thursday, the death toll in the Champlain Towers South was raised to 60 people. Authorities transitioned from a rescue mission into a recovery mission on Wednesday.

This decision was made after rescuers came to the consensus that “the possibility of someone still alive is near zero,” Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett said.