Details from Prelim Report on Wall Collapse

What caused the side of a downtown apartment building to come crashing down?

A new preliminary inspection and photos are revealing key clues.

According to an inspector hired by the property owner, all the ties that held the brick face to the building had "broken off, possibly due to corrosion." A gap of two inches was noted between the brick face and side of the building.

The inspector noted the condition of the building under the brick was "poor with numerous large gaps missing mortar in joints in some areas."

The engineer found the supports to be "heavily corroded" and recommended the removal of the center portion of the wall while putting reinforcing supports every two feet along the top and bottom portions of the wall.

A photo taken by the City of West Palm Beach Buildings Department is providing an up close and personal view of the wall supports that are suspected to have failed, causing the brick face of a downtown apartment building to come crashing down.

The photo shows the bulging brick face separated from the terra cotta wall of the building, as well as several of the metal supports that are supposed to hold the brick face to the side of the building.

The hook shaped metal supports are supposed to be embedded in the mortar of the brick wall. The top circle in the photo shows one of those hooks. The lower circle shows another support that building officials believe had corroded, leaving nothing but a straight piece of metal sticking out from the building.

Inspecting and maintaining the wall is the responsibility of the property owner. The city does not inspect the outer walls of the building.

The building remains closed to residents as engineers hired by the property owner figure out a plan to repair the building and ensure additional bricks don't separate from the building.