FL Condo Collapse: Emergency Declared, Nearly 100 Still Missing

Miami FL

24 June, 2021

8:47 AM

Description

Updated: 10:45 p.m., Thursday SURFSIDE, FL — With nearly 100 people still missing in the rubble of a 12-story condo in Surfside that partially collapsed early Thursday, Florida's Gov. Ron DeSantis signed an executive order issuing a state of emergency for Miami-Dade County, WSVN reported. This order will make it easier for those affected by the collapse to receive the state and federal resources they need. The Associated Press reports the town's mayor confirmed one person has died in the accident at the oceanfront Champlain Towers South Condo at 8777 Collins Ave.; 37 people have been pulled from the devastation and 102 have been accounted for. At least 99 residents of remain unaccounted for, Miami-Dade Police Department spokesperson Alvaro Zabaleta told CNN. It was previously reported by officials that anywhere from 50 to 60 people were still missing. Rescue crews will continue to work overnight, digging away at the rubble as they look for survivors, officials said. "I just have to implore everybody, just pray," Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners Vice Chair Oliver G. Gilbert III said during a late Thursday afternoon news conference. "We're all going to continue to work, but we need everybody to continue to pray, and not just for the people who are in those buildings, but for their families, who are desperately hoping that they're safe; for the firefighters and first responders who are going in there trying to save their lives; for this community. We have to pray. We're gonna pray and we're gonna work." Fire officials said 11 people have been treated for injuries, and they're using sonar devices to listen for people trapped in the rubble. Sounds of possible banging have been picked up, but no voices have been detected. "The rescuers are hearing sounds from the rubble," State Fire Marshal Jimmy Patronis said. "It's kind of hit or miss. You get into the zone where you are so passionate and so focused and so determined to make sure you are doing everything possible to save a life in an event like this." Fire and rescue crews have worked nonstop since 1:48 a.m. to search under the building and its parking garage. As firefighters dig down, some debris rains down on them, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Assistant Fire Chief Ray Jadallah said. As first responders, working with structural engineers, dig through the rubble, the threat of falling debris makes search-and-rescue efforts "a very slow and methodical process" he added. At one point, this shifting debris caused a small fire, which took about 20 minutes to extinguish. A hardship fund, SupportSurfside.org, has been established to help residents and families affected by the condo collapse. The Coral Gables Community Foundation, The Key Biscayne Community Foundation, and The Miami Foundation are working together to handle the fund, which is taking donations through the website. Officials from four countries — Venezuela, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay — said some of their citizens are missing in the building's collapse. According to Paraguay's Ministry of Foreign Affairs website, six Paraguayans are missing. This includes President Mario Abdo Benítez's sister-in-law and her three children, NBC News reported. Eduardo Bouzout, Uruguay's consul in Miami, told CNN that three Uruguayan citizens were in the building when it fell Venezuela's director of consular affairs, Brian Fincheltub, tweeted that four Venezuelans were in the building at the time of the collapse and are missing. Desde la madrugada haciendo seguimiento sobre el trágico desplome del edificio en Miami. Hasta el momento tenemos 4 venezolanos desaparecidos que se encontraban en el edificio. Ya estamos en contacto con las autoridades que realizan la búsqueda y sus familias. D.OS con nosotros!— Brian Fincheltub (@BrianFincheltub) June 24, 2021 And Argentina's consulate in Miami issued a press release on Twitter stating that nine Argentinians are missing after the condo tower fell. Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett said the death toll was likely to rise because the tower was quite full at the time of the collapse around 1:30 a.m. "The building is literally pancaked," Burkett said. "That is heartbreaking because it doesn't mean, to me, that we are going to be as successful as we wanted to be in finding people alive." Hours after the collapse, searchers were trying to reach a trapped child whose parents were believed to be dead. In another case, rescuers saved a mother and child, but the woman's leg had to be amputated to remove her from the rubble, Frank Rollason, director of Miami-Dade Emergency Management, told the Miami Herald. Shortly after midnight, Miami-Dade Fire and Rescue tweeted that 80 units — with help from area fire departments — were at the scene near 88th Street and Collins Avenue. Items and debris dangle from a section of the oceanfront Champlain Towers South Condo that partially collapsed Thursday in Surfside. (Susan Stocker/South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP) Of the condo tower's 136 units, 55 units along the northeast corridor were affected by the collapse, Assistant Fire Chief Ray Jadallah said during a Thursday morning news conference. Authorities did not say what may have caused the collapse. On video footage captured from nearby, the center of the building appeared to fall first, with a section nearest the ocean teetering and coming down seconds later as a huge dust cloud swallowed the neighborhood. Work was being done on the building's roof, but Burkett said he did not see how that could have been the cause. JUST IN: Video I've obtained of the building collapse in Surfside, Florida. pic.twitter.com/BGbRC7iSI9— Andy Slater (@AndySlater) June 24, 2021 Since MDFR started its search-and-rescue efforts, 35 people have been rescued from the structure and two were pulled from the rubble, Jadallah added. Ten people were treated at the scene and two were brought to the hospital, one of whom died, Burkett said. He also said 15 families walked out of the building on their own. "A massive search-and-rescue is underway, and we know that we're going to do everything we can possibly do to identify and rescue those that have been trapped in the rubble," Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said at a news conference. She thanked the first responders for their work and stressed the importance of allowing them to continue working at the site uninterrupted. Fire rescue personnel conduct a search and rescue with dogs through the rubble of the Champlain Towers South Condo after the multistory building partially collapsed in Surfside Thursday. (David Santiago/Miami Herald via AP) "Every minute in this search can make a huge difference," she said. Levine Cava also said she got a call from President Joe Biden, who offered federal aid. Hotels opened to some of the displaced residents, she said, and deliveries of food, medicine and more were being hastily arranged. A family reunification center has been set up at 9301 Collins Ave. for anyone seeking unaccounted for or missing relatives. Those with family members who are unaccounted for or are safe are asked to call 305-614-1819 to account for them. To report a missing person or fill out a wellness check form for residents of the condo building, visit www.miamidade.gov/emergency. Gov. Ron DeSantis toured the site of the collapse, calling it "a tragic day," during a Thursday afternoon news conference. He said, "The TV doesn't do it justice. It is really, really traumatic to see the collapse of a massive structure like that. At the same news conference, Levine Cava said, "This is the incredible, unimaginable situation that none of us could have predicted, but we have the right people on the job." Miami-Dade Fire Rescue is experienced in dealing with collapsed structure situations, she said. So far, they've been "able to rescue so many from the buildings (at Champlain Towers,) the intact building, the collapsed building, and really (it's) incredible that at this time we've only identified one person as having passed." The Champlain Towers South Condo, built in 1981, faces the ocean and has two sister buildings, Champlain Towers North and Champlain Towers East, the Miami Herald reported. Condo units recently put on the market in the tower have ranged from $600,000 to $699,000. Patch will update this breaking news story. This story contains reporting from the Associated Press.