Rescue crews continue to search the rubble of a 12-storey residential building a few days after it collapsed, still hoping to find survivors, though time is running out. The official death toll has risen to 10, while 151 people have not yet been found. Meanwhile, the mayor of Miami-Dade County today ordered a search of all buildings over 40 years old following the demolition of the South Tower of the Champlain complex, built in 1981.
Rescue crews continued to dig into the rubble for five days Monday, still hoping to find survivors in the collapsed building in Miami’s Surfside. Family members continue to have hope even though no one has been rescued alive since the structure was destroyed.
The death toll rose to ten on Monday. But more than 150 people are still missing.
Teams from Israel and Mexico have gone to support rescue operations – with six to eight teams working there every hour.
Families of the missing visited the scene by bus on Sunday from where they could see rescue teams working: firefighters, wind dogs and search experts using radar and sonar equipment.
Dozens of people remain missing, and Miami-Day Mayor Daniella Levine Cava told a news conference that authorities are now having candid conversations with family members who still have hope for their loved ones. On Sunday, Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett tried to keep hopes alive as he spoke on ABC’s “This Week.”
“We are working 24 hours a day. Without vacation. The only thing we think of is the hope of pulling their family members alive from those ruins. This is what we are doing, and we will not stop. Not today. Not tomorrow Not the day after tomorrow. “We will continue to search until everyone is found,” said Mayor Charles Burkett.
Rescue crews were hampered by fires burning at the scene. Some have criticized the pace of rescue efforts.
Outside the ruins, in an improvised memorial, are the names and photographs of those not yet found. Mikel Noriega’s grandmother is among them.
“They have been looking for days, and to be honest we do not know what to expect. But I can tell you that we certainly have high hopes. We are keeping hope alive. We believe that this is not the end “, says Mr. Noriega.
Meanwhile, the city of Surfside published documents from 2018 that show that the building was required to be repaired at a cost of 9.1 million dollars after an engineering inspection found major structural damage in the concrete part under the pool of the building and in some other parts.
A former resident of the building told NPR radio that officials had assured them the building was safe.
“Surfside town officials told us the building was not in poor condition. No one ever, ever, ever told us that that building was in such poor condition. Nobody “, Susanna Alvarez is heard to say.
Concerns are now mounting about a similar apartment building nearby.
Surfs Mayor Charles Burkett says authorities are urging people to evacuate – but not under duress.
“I do not know if I would feel comfortable staying in that building until I knew for sure that a detailed study of that building had been done,” Burkett told ABC News This Week.
The mayor of Miami-Dade County today ordered a search of all buildings over 40 years old. The Champlain Towers complex was built in 1981.
