Surfside condo collapse victims will get $1 billion after judge ruling

‘It’s a remarkable result. It is extraordinary,’ says judge

The families of the 98 people killed when the Champlain Towers South condo collapsed in Surfside, Miami, last June will receive a share of $1bn.

Judge Michael Hanzman of the Miami-Dade Circuit Court announced the settlement on Thursday, a day before the one-year anniversary of the collapse.

“It will never be enough to compensate them for the tragic loss they have suffered,” said the judge, while praising the work of the legal team involved.

“This settlement is the best we can do. It’s a remarkable result. It is extraordinary.”

Most of the $1.02bn will go to people who lost family members in the collapse of the 12-story building, the Associated Press reported, while $100m is earmarked for legal fees and $96m for owners of the 136 units lost in the collapse.

Contributions were made by insurance companies, engineering firms and a luxury condominium next door to the 1.8 acre site, and none of the victims objected to the agreement to the court.

While none of the parties admit any wrongdoing, the construction of the luxury condominium was believed to have been somewhat responsible for the collapse of the Champlain Towers South.

Years worth of maintenance problems and questions about the quality of its original construction and inspections in the early 1980s, as well as rising sea levels caused by climate change and damage caused by salt water intrusion, have been cited. 

A final conclusion on what caused the tragedy, which is among the worst building collapses in the history of the US, is likely many years away.

Additional reporting by the Associated Press.