Waterside restaurant’s deck structure partially collapses, throwing customers into water

FORT LAUDERDALE — Customers at a waterfront restaurant in Fort Lauderdale were pulled from the water after a 15-by-15-foot portion of the dock collapsed Friday evening, Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue Battalion Chief Stephen Gollan said.

The collapse at Flip Flops Dockside Eatery was reported about 5 p.m. At least three adults swam to a nearby docked boat and were pulled from the water by people on the boat, Gollan said.

The dock had apparent signs of decay, Gollan said, and visible areas that were recently repaired.

Flip Flops was open Saturday. The deck was cordoned off and closed. A few customers were sitting at indoor tables and eating around noon.

A manager offered a “no comment” response and requested the South Florida Sun Sentinel’s reporter to leave when asked about the incident.

Two of the customers had minor injuries and were taken to Holy Cross Health in Fort Lauderdale.

WSVN-Ch. 7 reported the people who slid into the water after the deck collapsed were in town from Virginia celebrating a friend’s 50th birthday.

“We were here all afternoon, we had so much fun. We just happened to be in the wrong place and standing there, and it gave way,” one of the guests told WSVN.

“I’ve never been in a situation like that, and it just collapsed.”

One person with the party jumped into the water to assist two others, according to WSVN.

A condominium directly across the water said its surveillance camera only points at its swimming pool and doesn’t provide a view across the water to Flip Flops.

Employees at Shooter’s Waterfront, a restaurant/ bar next door to Flip Flop’s, said they’d been instructed not to comment.

But one employee said a co-worker had video of the aftermath of the deck collapse.

A structural engineer for the city inspected the rest of the structure and closed down the dock, Gollan said.

The restaurant is located at 3051 NE 32nd Ave. on the Intracoastal Waterway, just south of Oakland Park Boulevard.