Conor Moore | News Director
Nearly a dozen elevators at FIU display expired certificates, despite completed inspections. However, some elevators, like the ones in Primera Casa, remained expired for nearly two years.
“FIU has 153 elevators and the certificates have been installed at the BBC 17 elevator locations but we are delayed in their installation at MMC,” said Greg Burdine-Coakley in an e-mail chain with PantherNOW.
“There is no delay for the elevator inspections and all FIU elevators have received their annual inspection. Facilities Management is responsible for hiring an independent inspection company to conduct the inspections annually. The inspection company submits the inspection reports to Miami Dade County (MDC) and then MDC mails the certificate to the University,” he continued.
An examination by PantherNOW found over 10 elevators show expired certificates as of September 2024. While some have only expired this year, several, such as the middle elevators at the Charles Perry Building also known as Primera Casa, have expired since June 2022.
Other notable locations included the Green Library, SIPA, Graham Center and Deuxieme Maison.
Student and faculty testimonials reflected a previous lack of proper upkeep by FIU.
“I personally use the stairs most of the time because I only live on the second floor, but in my opinion, the elevators are just okay. It’s just unfortunate that sometimes we have to wait so long. That’s the main reason I started taking the stairs in the first place and then I just started becoming accustomed to it,” said Kayla Gallagher, a freshman and theater student.
This email was received on Sep. 17. Certificates have still not been installed across various elevators.
Over 3,600 students at FIU have disabilities, potentially putting any number of them at risk if an elevator malfunctions or breaks down mid-operation.
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