Another body was found Tuesday in the rubble of a Florida apartment building, the mayor said, bringing the death toll to at least 12, while 149 people are still missing.
The latest victim of the catastrophe, which can be considered the worst accidental collapse in the history of the United States, was not immediately identified by Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava during an afternoon press conference.
Investigators have not yet determined what caused the sudden collapse of the 40-year-old building. Initial attention has been focused on the structural deficiencies described in a 2018 engineering report.
In April 2021, the president of the building’s residents’ association warned residents that the concrete damage had “significantly worsened” and encouraged them to spend about $ 15 million on the assessments needed to make the repairs, media reported.
Florida Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie said local authorities on Tuesday had asked the federal government to send additional search and rescue teams to the scene in Surfside town.
Authorities say they still have hopes of surviving in the rubble of concrete and metal.
“The rescue effort continues unabated, except during a brief lightning storm we had today,” said Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett.
No one has been rescued alive from the rubble of the Champlain Towers South complex since hours after one side of the high-rise building collapsed early Thursday morning as most residents slept.
Fire officials said they heard faint sounds from inside the rubble and found gaps deep in the rubble with enough space where one could survive.
But Miami-Dade County Fire Chief Alan Cominsky said search-and-rescue personnel faced a challenging task as they worked 12-hour hot shifts.
“That building collapsed almost above the ground where it was founded – we’re talking about 12 floors, with underground garages, all in the same place,” Mr Cominsky said. “I am sure when I talk about the extraordinary scale of the event, of what we are seeing,” he told reporters.
Rescue workers have removed more than 1 million kilograms of concrete from debris since the collapse, Mr Cominsky said. Teams include experts sent from Israel and Mexico to help with the search.
The White House said President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden will travel to Surfside on Thursday to visit the families of the victims.
Investigations have meanwhile begun to determine the cause of the building’s collapse.
The Miami Herald published photos taken by a contractor just 36 hours before the tragedy – who said there was water in the building’s garage, concrete cracks and corrosion on the pool rails.
The Wall Street Journal also published a letter sent to the building’s occupants no later than April by the building’s board president warning that the building needed major repairs and that the building’s condition had deteriorated since the inspection report. year 2018 which had made it clear that the building had serious damage and that repairs amounting to $ 9.1 million were required.
A structural engineer who took part in the investigation into the 9/11 attacks on the Pentagon has been hired to inspect the demolition of the building but this process is expected to be lengthy. The ruins of the building are evidence of this colossal work to find the cause of the collapse.
Officials said the waste should be transported to a warehouse where it will be inspected, but now search and rescue operations remain a priority./VOA
