Professional Biography
Maria Vergara is a Senior Associate at YA Group and a Civil Engineer with a postgraduate specialization in Seismic Engineering and more than 10 years of combined experience in structural engineering, forensic engineering, building consulting, and insurance claims adjustment. Maria began her career in Colombia as a bridge design engineer before transitioning to structural engineering on residential and hospitality building projects in Florida.
Maria has extensive experience in forensic engineering, having transitioned into the insurance industry in 2018 to conduct failure analyses, cause-and-origin determinations, damage assessments, and repair solutions for structures impacted by collapses, construction defects, and natural disasters including hurricanes and earthquakes. She subsequently worked as a Property Loss Adjuster for five years, managing complex residential and commercial insurance claims throughout the Caribbean.
Maria is fluent in both English and Spanish, extending her ability to serve clients across a broad range of markets and geographies.
Credentials & Certifications
- EIT
Representative Consulting Assignments
- Miami Beach, Florida | Hotel Tower Window Assessment — Assessment to determine the extent of damage and provide window replacement recommendations following hurricane event
- Residential Building — Evaluation and determination of hurricane-related damage to the facade of a high-rise building
- Jacksonville, Florida | Seafood processing and packing plant — Assessment of inclined structural masonry load-bearing wall and provide repair recommendations
- El Paso, Texas | Concrete Building Under Construction — Forensic investigation of concrete slab cracking in a building under construction
- Freeport, Bahamas | Grand Bahama Freeport Airport — Structural assessment of the airport's main building to identify, quantify, and evaluate damage resulting from Hurricane Dorian and provide repair recommendations
- Great Abaco Highway, Bahamas | Private Club and Community — Structural assessment of commercial and residential wood structures to identify, quantify, and evaluate Hurricane Dorian-related damage and provide repair recommendations
- Montego Bay, Jamaica | Beachfront Resort — Assessment of a beachfront resort to identify Hurricane Melissa-related damage
- Medellín, Colombia | Steel Framing System — Forensic engineering analysis of collapsed steel framed structure to determine the root cause of failure through destructive and non-destructive material testing, finite element modeling, and structural evaluation of loading conditions and failure mechanisms
Professional Experience
- Senior Associate | YA Engineering Services | 2026 - Current
- Regional Loss Adjuster | McLarens | 2021 - 2026
- Professional Engineer I | J.S. Held | 2018 - 2021
- Engineer | DeSimone Consulting Engineers | 2017 - 2018
- Engineer | ICC | 2016 - 2017
Practices & Skillsets
- Condition Assessment
- Construction Administration
- Failure Analysis
- Seismic Evaluations and Retrofit Design
- Structural Analysis
Education
- Bachelor of Science (BS), Civil Engineering, EAFIT University, Medellin, Colombia, 2015
Training Courses
- Postgraduate Specialization in Seismic Engineering, EAFIT University, Colombia (December 2016)
Professional Licenses
- Engineer in Training (EIT) - Puerto Rico - License #29469