When Texans think about injuries and negligence, roof collapses are likely not the first cause they think of. Rather, they may often imagine, read or hear on the news about car and truck accidents, which certainly do cause many injuries and even fatalities.
However, structural problems due to lack of maintenance, defective construction, incompetent repair work or other forms of negligent behavior are not all that uncommon.
Townhouse complex collapse
As CBS DFW reported, one group of residents recently learned how structural problems with the roofing of a townhome complex might easily become a cause of major damage and possible serious injury. In that case, a three-story building suffered a failure when the top floor plummeted down upon the dwelling beneath it. This caused that second-floor townhome ceiling to crash to and through its floor. That weight caused it to fall through that first-floor ceiling into the unit below and crash into the bottom floor townhouse.
Three separate homes, one on top of the other, incurred much damage. Miraculously, perhaps, nobody suffered physical injury, although it remains unclear if the residents’ property within the townhomes sustained damage.
Costly evacuations may befall residents
The building residents evacuated due to obvious safety concerns. Such evacuation may cost those residents damages in the form of having to pay for a hotel stay for the foreseeable future.
What caused the collapse was not clear, as the building was not very old. Its construction occurred in the 1980s. However, the entranceway displayed paperwork indicating that roof work had been the subject of a permit application and issuance a few months prior. However, it also noted that such work was complete.
Other construction work occurring on the building at the time of the crash did not involve the roof. A structural engineer was going to inspect the premises to determine the cause of the collapse.
