Homeowner Alleges Guests at Rental Home Where 12 Were Hurt in Deck Collapse Broke 6-Person Capacity Agreement

The oceanfront California home where 12 people were injured in a deck collapse was only allowed to have six people there at any given time, the homeowner who rented out the property told Inside Edition. 

When neighbors alerted the homeowner that a much larger crowd had shown up to the home in Malibu, she says she spent three hours pleading with the guests to leave and even called police. Fifteen minutes later, the deck collapsed, plunging guests to the jagged rocks below, surveillance video shows.

“We heard a crack, and I literally saw all of my best friends and my girlfriend fall 15 feet to the rocks,” a bystander said.

The homeowner shared a recording with Inside Edition of her telling the renters to get out before the collapse.

“You shouldn't have done this! The rental agreement is very specific. It's six persons at all times. At all times. And no parties and events are allowed,” the homeowner can be heard saying.

“OK. Well, I'm sorry Maria. We'll try to get everybody out of here,” a man says on the other end. 

The homeowner also shared a video of her home strewn with alcohol bottles following the party. Footage from her neighbor’s surveillance camera shows some guests sitting on the deck railing earlier in the party before it collapsed. 

The fire department has now declared the house uninhabitable until the deck is fixed. None of the injuries were life-threatening, according to authorities. 

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