Miami building collapse - updates: Death toll reaches 12 as extra rescue team requested amid tropical forecast
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The death toll from the collapse of Champlain Towers South in Surfside, Florida, continues to rise, with 12 confirmed fatalities, and a further 149 people missing.
Authorities in Florida have asked the federal government to send another rescue team to aid its efforts amid reports that tropical storms could hit Miami in the coming days.
Over the weekend, US media reported that a Surfside official assured residents of the now-collapsed condominium that it was “in very good shape”, a month after an engineering report found it had “major structural damage”.
A resident of a sister building told reporters he had “concerns” about a crack that appeared n his block, Champlain Towers East, after Thursday’s tragedy. Residents in the block have been offered to evacuate, although there is no imminent threat.
It comes amid reports that the building’s developers broke rules by adding an additional floor to the 12-storey building, and afterwards ignored warnings of structural damage.
Those with family members who may have been in the building at the time of its collapse are asked to call 305-614-1819. More information here.
Former Surfside official on leave from new job after building collapse
The official who reportedly told Champlain Towers South residents their building was “in very good shape” despite a 2018 engineers report outlining major repairs in on leave from his current job, according to The Miami Herald.
The City of Doral said in a statement on Tuesday that Rosendo “Ross” Prieto was taking a leave of absence from firm CAP Government Inc, which provides building department services to cities.
“On June 28, 2021, C.A.P. Government, Inc. notified the City of Doral that Mr. Prieto was on a leave of absence and assigned another employee to assist the City of Doral Building Department on a temporary basis,” Doral spokesperson Maggie Santos said.
While Prieto did not respond to the Herald’s request for comment, he previously told them he didn’t remember receiving the 2018 report that noted “major structural damage”.
The Herald reported he left his position with the City of Surfside in November last year. Here is the background:
Official who assured residents Miami block safe doesn’t remember warnings, reports say
Records show Surfside offical said building in good shape despite reviewing engineer report that outlined major repairs
Engineer begins probe of condo section that remains standing
he expert hired by the City of Surfside began his investigation into the collapse with an inspection of the portion that remains standing, he told The Washington Post.
Allyn Kilsheimer, president of KCE Structural Engineers, said he began on Tuesday with a focus on whether the remaining portion is at risk of collapsing, and whether it is being held up by the rubble.
“I can’t stop it from falling,” he told the Post in an interview. “What I can do is try and make sure I know when to warn them about the remaining building, and how they should get off of the pile.”
Authorities requested an additional federal rescue team on Tuesday ahead of a storm warning over the next five days, and Kilsheimer told the Post the hurricane season caused concern that high winds could cause a collapse.
“My guys can do the computer modeling and say, ‘If we get winds more than X, we have a problem,’ ” said Kilsheimer, whose team began its work remotely. “Then I can tell these guys, ‘Hey if the wind gets to a certain number, get off of there.’ ”
Florida governor says no one will be left behind
On the sixth day of a painstaking search, Governor Ron DeSantis evoked a well-known military commitment to leave no one behind on the battlefield and pledged to do the same for the people still missing in the rubble.
“The way I look at it, as an old Navy guy, is when somebody is missing in action, in the military, you’re missing until you’re found. We don’t stop the search,” DeSantis said at a news conference.
“I think that’s what is happening. Those first responders are breaking their backs trying to find anybody they can. I think they are going to continue to do that. They’ve been very selfless. They’ve put themselves at risk to do it.”
Venezuelan ambassador vists collapsed condo site
Ambassador Carlos Vecchio spoke to grieving families about the Surfside tragedy, which cost the life of two Venezuelan citizens.
“Being here today is to show our solidarity, and to express our solidarity to the families, and also to the authorities,” he said.
“Let’s keep the faith, let’s keep that with unity and let’s keep that with the Lord. And I hope that we can announce in the short term that they have saved many lives.”
Four people from Venezuela are among the 149 others still missing.
Elderly couple married for 58 years found by each other’s side in Miami condo collapse
Their story began when they were just 12-years-old in Cuba and continued after Antonio Lozan moved to the United States. he eventually married Gladys on Miami Beach in the early 1960s, Sergio said. They had been together so long, they’d joke about what would happen if they lost the other.
“I was told they were in bed together. That’s the end of the romantic story,” Sergio Lozan said.
Elderly couple married for 58 years found by each other’s side in Miami condo collapse
Couple met as 12-year-olds in Cuba before immigrating to the United States and marrying on Miami Beach
CNN analyst says officials should stop calling search a ‘recovery mission’
Juliette Kayyem, a former Obama administration appointee, took to Twitter and told her followers that it should be “hours” not days for the purpose of the search to change.
“I write this carefully, sadly. There should be a time very soon-- hours, not more than a day -- when officials need to announce that this is no longer a recovery mission. This was a concrete structure that fell like a pancake. False hope can be cruel. It is Day 6,” she wrote.
Florida fire department posts pictures of heavy lifting work at condo
The Hillsborough County Fire Rescue department took to Twitter to show the difficult work being done during the search and rescue operation in Surfside.
“Our heavy rigging team hard at work securing large pieces of concrete to be lifted by crane off the rubble pile at the Surfside building collapse. They must often bore through the concrete & secure to cables to lift. Dangerous but critical work in search for victims,” the department tweeted.
Florida DEM director wants more federal assitance
Florida Division of Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie says that the state is requesting more federal assistance and that another urban search team is set to arrive at the Surfside collapse.
He told a Tuesday evening press conference that the team’s arrival would allow exhausted rescuers, who have been working around the clock since Thursday, to get some rest.
Florida State Attorney to have Grand Jury look into Surfside collapse
Florida State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle, who is also the prosecutor for Miami-Dade County, announced the step in a Tuesday statement.
“I plan to request that our Grand Jury look at what steps we can take to safeguard our residents without jeopardizing any scientific, public safety, or potential criminal investigations,” she said.
Ms Rundle said that she would not do anything that jeopardised the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s investigation.
“However, this is a matter of extreme public importance, and as the State Attorney elected to keep this community safe, I will not wait,” she added.
Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava told CNN that her office would fully support Ms Rundle’s review.
Daughter of missing condo resident wants to talk to Joe Biden on visit.
Magaly Ramsey, whose mother is among the 149 missing residents, said she hopes the White House can ensure accountability for the “very poor decisions” made before the building’s collapse.
“I would love to tell (Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden) how I feel and I would like to stop this from ever happening again because I feel like some very poor decisions were made and it robbed me from saying goodbye to my mother,” Ms Ramsey told CNN.
She described how she had lost her mother in the condo collapse after losing her father to Covid-19 last August.
“I didn’t get to hold him. I didn’t get to say goodbye. I didn’t get to say goodbye to my mother,” she added.
“I want a sense of accountability for that. I know I am hoping the government does intercede to provide that.”
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