WARNING: This article is an account of another deck failure. Please check your own deck for rot, wood destroying insects, and inadequate securment to the home. 

The only response so far was a written warning asking residents to stay off their decks, added Martinez, who doesn't feel safe in his apartment anymore.

The property owner has 30 days to submit the engineering report.

CBC News asked a certified independent building inspector to check the structure. Hugh Poole said there are signs of rot and severe damage everywhere.

Certified building inspector Hugh Poole said there are signs of rot and severe damage everywhere in the building.

"This is a building that is pretty well done," Poole said. "These people should not be living in most of these units."

Currently, there's no law to require regular inspections or repairs of rental units and it's up to the residents to report problems, according to the Tenant Resource & Advisory Centre, a Vancouver-based non-profit organization working on behalf of B.C.'s one million tenants.

"Where tenants feel there may be a problem, if they call the city and ask for an inspector to look at a property, the city will do that right away," said Martha Lewis, the centre's executive director.

CONTINUE READING “VIRGINIA DECK COLLAPSE KILLS WOMAN”