"As rescuers search for survivors, early signs point to sinking land as a possible factor in a region where rising seas and subsidence are reshaping the land."
"The deadly collapse of a 12-story condominium tower on a barrier island north of Miami Beach early Thursday morning has spurred new calls to survey buildings in areas vulnerable to sea level rise and subsidence, highlighting one of the lesser-known threats of climate change.
The cause of the disaster, which killed at least four people and left more than 150 missing as of Friday, remains unclear as rescuers pick through the rubble for survivors. But scientists have long feared for the future of this densely populated strip of land atop porous limestone as rising global temperatures increase sea levels.
Land beneath buildings tends to sink as dirt and rock shift as a result of removal or erosion. From 1993 to 1999, the Champlain Towers South high-rise on the Surfside beachfront sank roughly 2 millimeters per year, according to satellite data used in a study that Florida International University researcher Shimon Wdowinski published in April 2020. At the same time, sea levels are rising approximately one-eighth of an inch per year."
Alexander C. Kaufman and Chris D’Angelo report for HuffPost June 25, 2021.
SEE ALSO:
"Before Condo Collapse, Rising Seas Long Pressured Miami Coastal Properties" (Washington Post)
"Florida’s Oceanfront Cities Are Not Prepared for Sea Level Rise" (Earther)
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