PONTE VEDRA, Fla. — A quiet beach neighborhood turned into an emergency scene after a two-story deck collapsed, injuring several people. Action News Jax spoke with nearby homeowners, who said they believe a lack of upkeep may be to blame.
Crime scene tape surrounded the vacation rental, and firefighters said several people were hurt in the collapse.
Chris Naff, St. Johns County Fire Rescue public information officer, said, “We evaluated 13 patients on scene and ended up transporting eight of them. Two of them went to a local trauma center with some serious injuries, but they’re stable, and the other six went to local hospitals with stable injuries.”
Fire officials reported that no one was trapped when crews arrived.
Naff added, “There was no one trapped by the debris. We didn’t have to rescue anybody out from underneath the debris. By the time we got there, everybody was off the deck and kind of walking around and being pulled to the front of the house.”
Nearby homeowners described their initial shock.
Nicholas Recco, a local resident, said,
“We weren’t sure what happened, but to hear that the deck collapsed is pretty insane.”
Some pointed to concerns about rental property maintenance.
Frank Recco, a homeowner, said,
“But that house is rented quite a bit. There’s always different people on the beach if you.”
He added, “These houses are not maintained. I guess that’s the problem for a lot of these rental properties.”
The cause of the collapse is currently under investigation.
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