A warehouse roof collapse near Miami International Airport Tuesday afternoon spurred a search with fire crews and rescue dogs on the property, ready to examine the area, according to reporting from The Miami Herald.
As of 4 p.m., everyone inside the warehouse had been accounted for and no injuries were reported.
The incident happened around 1:20 p.m. at 1955 NW 72nd Ave., according to local media. The size of the cave-in was about 80 feet by 25 feet.
A rescue team with dogs must wait for the all clear from structural engineers before searching the area to ensure no one is trapped beneath the wreckage.
Additional details, including what may have caused the collapse, were not immediately available Tuesday.
Leesfield & Partners
Leesfield & Partners is a personal injury law firm with nearly five decades of experience representing injured individuals and grieving families following motor vehicle collisions, cruise ship accidents, catastrophic boating incidents, and other serious injury-causing events. Over the years, the firm has been recognized both statewide and nationally as a top injury law firm, securing landmark results and helping to drive meaningful safety reforms.
In a significant premises liability case that resulted in the adaption of a Florida carbon monoxide law, Founder and Managing Partner Ira Leesfield represented a family that was exposed to the lethal gas during a stay at a Key West hotel. The family was visiting from Iowa and were luckily able to call for help before passing out from carbon monoxide exposure. The cause of the leak was a damaged roof vent that allowed the gas to leak into the room. They were not the only guests affected by the colorless and odorless gas.
The case caught the attention of nationwide media outlets and was a strong proponent for the passage of the law, which now requires public lodging places to be equipped with carbon monoxide detectors near sleeping areas to protect guests from this silent danger.
This duty of care is placed on public lodging establishments such as hotels, motels and Airbnbs and refers to the legal principle of premises liability. Under this principle, corporations and property owners have a duty of care to ensure the safety and well-being of their guests.
Under premises liability, which refers to a property owner or management company’s responsibility to ensure that their guests are safe from harm, these entities must maintain the property in a safe, working condition. If the property has an issue, such as a loose stepping stone, these entities have a responsibility to address the issue in a timely manner and notify or warn guests and other invitees about the possible hazard.
If a hazard, such as a loose stepping stone, is not addressed and someone is injured, then the injured party may be able to make a claim. This was the case for a Leesfield & Partners client who stepped on a paver at a townhome community in Florida and shattered her ankle in three places. The injury was among the “most severe and gruesome … known to medicine,” according to official court documents.
In that case, Partner Justin B. Shapiro obtained a $525,000 settlement for the schoolteacher and avid walker.
Previous Cases
Previously, Leesfield & Partners obtained a $7 million settlement for a 35-year-old client who suffered a tragic spinal cord injury that left him paralyzed from the shins down. In this case, our client was visiting a friend’s apartment when he fell from the second-story balcony due to a faulty railing. The railing was an issue that was well-known to the building’s landlord who ignored multiple complaints from tenants, regularly violated building code and failed to hire a licensed contractor.
The result in this case was $6 million over the apartment building’s $1 million liability insurance policy.
A confidential settlement was obtained for college students who were exposed to carbon monoxide as they slept in campus housing. The settlement came about after a Leesfield & Partners investigation found that the house showed over 200 parts per million of carbon monoxide. The readings were taken after the house had already been ventilated by first responders and after the gas had been shut off, showing that our clients were likely exposed to a greater ppm reading.
In this case, the cause of the leak was identified as a faulty exhaust pipe in house’s gas furnace.
In another case involving paralysis following an incident in a premises liability case, the firm obtained over $5 million for an injured client.
More recently, Mr. Shapiro obtained $1.8 million for a man who shattered his hip at a Florida vacation rental.
The firm previously represented a woman, 62, who was injured while trying to grab toilet paper from an overhead pallet at a warehouse store. Instead of the intended product, the entire pallet fell on her, causing significant injuries. The store had done nothing to warm customers not to reach for these items or limit their access to these products.
A verdict of over $1 million was returned to our client.
In a concussion case that occurred at a building, the firm secured over $1.4 million for the injured client.
A tragic premises liability case involving a wrongful death at a treatment center, Leesfield & Partners obtained $1 million for the grieving family.
A case involving our client’s fall at a hotel was resolved with a $1 million recovery amount.
The firm obtained a $900,000 recovery amount for a client involved in a premises liability accident who sustained brain damage.
In a slip and fall at a fast-food restaurant, the firm recovered $799,000 for an injured client.
Mr. Robinson secured a $350,00 settlement for a woman who shattered her hip at a popular Florida tourist attraction.
In a separate premises liability case, Mr. Robinsons obtained $350,000 for a client who fell down a non-code-compliant staircase at a rental property.
Another premises liability case was settled for $300,000 by Mr. Shapiro and Mr. Robinson for a client who fell in the bathroom at a Florida resort, significantly injuring his wrist.
A confidential amount was secured by Trial Attorney Bernardo Pimentel II for a boy who suffered serious and painful injuries after a car slammed through the storefront of a chain convenience store. In that case, the child was standing in line at the register with his mother when the horrific crash occurred. Shockingly, the store lacked concrete bollards that could have prevented the accident — despite similar incidents having occurred at several of the company’s other locations. Compounding matters, merchandise was stacked against the front windows, obstructing the view and preventing anyone inside from seeing the vehicle as it barreled toward the store.
Eric Shane, a Leesfield & Partners Trial Attorney, is representing multiple clients in separate Legionnaires’ Disease cases linked to exposure from contaminated hot tubs and other inadequately maintained water systems, in violation of Florida’s health regulations. These cases are in various stages of litigation.