Three more bodies have been pulled from the rubble of the collapsed 12-story Miami condo tower pushing the death toll up to four while off...
Three more bodies have been pulled from the rubble of the collapsed 12-story Miami condo tower pushing the death toll up to four while officials revealed 159 people are still missing.
Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said Friday morning that rescue teams had recovered the bodies of three more victims overnight from the rubble of the Champlain Towers South in Surfside, near Miami Beach.
This came after one woman was confirmed dead Thursday when she was pulled from the rubble and rushed to hospital, hours after the oceanfront tower collapsed around 1:30am that morning.
Officials said they had managed to identify three of the four victims by late Friday morning but have not publicly released that information.
Dr. Emma Lew, director of the Miami-Dade County Medical Examiner Department, said one of the victims had been alive when they were pulled from the rubble and rushed to hospital but died later.
Now, almost 36 hours on from the collapse, at least 37 people have been rescued from the rubble or parts of the damaged building still standing, with 11 injured and four hospitalized.
The mayor said a total of 120 people have now been accounted for 'which is very, very good news' but revealed the number of people still missing has climbed to 159 - a number she warned was 'very fluid.'
Officials had initially said 99 people were unaccounted for following the building's collapse. But, with the tower housing a mix of seasonal and year-round residents, authorities were unsure exactly how many people were inside at the time.
Three more bodies have been pulled from the rubble of the collapsed 12-story Miami condo tower (an aerial view of the disaster) pushing the death toll up to four while officials revealed 159 people are still missing
Rescue crews comb through the rubble of what remains of the oceanfront condo building in Surfside, near Miami Beach
Ariel images show rescue crews in Surfside, near Miami Beach, combing through tons of rubble for anyone who may have survived the collapse of part of an oceanfront residential tower
Rescue teams have been working round the clock since the collapse of the 12-story condo building Thursday morning
Personal belongings and pieces of furniture can be seen inside the partially collapsed building Friday morning
People hug as they wait for news about relatives at the community center in Surfside, with 159 people still missing
Rescue teams continue to search the rubble of Champlain Towers South in Surfside, near Miami Beach, Florida
This comes as:
- Rescue teams dug through the rubble with their hands and heavy machinery in the hunt for survivors
- 159 people are unaccounted for 36 hours on from the collapse including the first cousin of the former president of Chile and the president of Paraguay's sister-in-law
- Sources told DailyMail.com many people in the building were tourists from Latin America renting apartments while they traveled to the US to get COVID-19 vaccines
- Distraught family members handed over DNA samples and gave details of distinguishing features of loved ones in an effort to help identify any victims or survivors found
- President Biden declared a state of emergency in Florida sending federal aid to help in the search
- The White House said it was working to set up a phone call between Biden and Gov. Ron DeSantis on the crisis
- Surfside Town Manager Andy Hyatt said the town would carry out 'due diligence' to find out what caused the collapse and ensure other buildings in the area are safe
- It was revealed that scientists had warned last year that the condo development was sinking at a rate of about 2 millimeters a year in the 1990s
- The building was also due to have its safety recertified for the first time in 40 years this year and had recently undergone construction work on its roof
A total of 55 condos collapsed on Thursday - more than a third of the 136 within the building. Around 80 percent of the building was reportedly occupied.
Officials said Thursday they believed the building had been 'substantially full' and pleaded to the public for information about anyone who may have been inside.
Sources close to the investigation told DailyMail.com most of the people in the building were tourists from Argentina, Brazil, Venezuela and Colombia and had traveled to the US to get COVID-19 vaccines which are difficult to get in their respective countries.
At least 31 Latin American citizens are currently unaccounted for - including nine Argentinians, six people each from Paraguay, Columbia and Venezuela, three from Uruguay and one Chilean - but, sources said many people are thought to have been renting the condos as Airbnbs, meaning it may be difficult to identify all the victims.
Among those known to be missing are the first cousin of the former president of Chile and current UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet, the president of Paraguay's sister-in-law and her family, and a celebrity plastic surgeon.
Three more bodies have been pulled from the rubble of the collapsed 12-story Miami condo tower pushing the death toll up to four while officials revealed 159 people are still missing
Heavy machinery was also drafted in to Miami to help in the search Friday - more than 24 hours on from the disaster
Firefighters and rescue teams were on the scene, now with the help of federal assistance, as the search continued
Firefighters and rescue crews carefully combed through the rubble with their hands as they continued to search for survivors
The part of the condo tower still standing is seen as heavy machinery and search and rescue crews hunt for survivors
Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava confirmed Friday that rescue teams had recovered the bodies of three more victims overnight
Paraguay's First Lady Silvana López Moreira arrived into Florida Thursday as her sister Sophia López Moreira, her husband Luis Pettengill, and their three young children remained missing more than 24 hours on from the disaster. The family were said to be celebrating Luis' birthday after they traveled to the US for their COVID-19 vaccines.
With the search entering its second full day Friday, Joe Biden declared a state of emergency in Florida and federal assistance was drafted in to Miami while questions continued to mount over the cause of the tragedy and whether it could have been avoided.
Miami Beach State Senator Jason Pizzo told the Miami Herald he had seen one body removed from the collapse site in a yellow body bag overnight Thursday and another that was marked.
Desperate family members gathered had handed over DNA swabs to help with the identification of the victims so far found and are being asked to detail any distinguishing features such as tattoos, scars and dental work as they anxiously wait at the nearby reunification center for news about their loved ones.
The mayor said a total of 120 people have now been accounted for 'which is very, very good news' but revealed the number of people still missing has climbed to 159 - a number she warned was 'very fluid'
A banner reading 'Surfside Strong' is seen on a balcony nearby close to the condo building in Surfside, near Miami Beach
Rescue teams are seen early Friday using dogs, sonar and heavy machinery to search for any signs of life in the rubble
Teams had worked through the night searching for survivors as they battled with fires reigniting in the rubble
Now, more than 24 hours on from the collapse, at least 37 people have been rescued from the rubble or parts of the damaged building still standing, with 11 injured and four hospitalized
Cava said in a Friday morning press conference it had been a 'tragic night' but she remained 'very hopeful' that more survivors will be found and insisted it was still a rescue - rather than a recovery - mission at this time.
'We still have hope that we will find people alive,' she said.
Rescue teams were seen digging through the rubble using both heavy machinery and their hands Friday morning as they held out hope that more survivors would found.
They had worked through the night using dogs, sonar and heavy machinery to search for signs of life as they battled with fires reigniting in the rubble.
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Chief Ray Jadallah said Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) teams had arrived on the scene overnight following the president's emergency declaration and were assisting the 130 firefighters already on the ground.
Rescue teams have now cleared the parts of the building that are still standing and are focusing on combing the rubble
The aerial footage shows the building reduced to rubble while the still standing part of the building has fallen away
At least 37 people have so far been rescued from the rubble or parts of the damaged building still standing, with 11 injured and four hospitalized
Jadallah said a fire reignited in the building overnight but 'it did not slow down our search and rescue operation.'
Sounds were heard coming from the rubble, he said, fueling hope more people will be found alive.
However, rescue teams were unable to determine if the sounds were voices of survivors or not.
'We are listening for sounds, it's not specifically, you know human sounds, it could be...not necessarily tapping, it could be steel...it could be some of the debris kind of raining down,' said Jadallah.
'We have hope, and every time that we hear a sound, we concentrate on that area... as we continue to hear those sounds, we concentrate on those areas.'
The focus of the search has now turned to combing through the rubble after the parts of the building still standing were fully cleared, he added.
'So at this point now, all resources have been shifted to the rubble, including from above and from below.'
Heavy machinery will be used to pull some of the metal off the disaster site so teams can search for voids beneath where people could be trapped, he said.
The mayor praised the rescue teams who are putting themselves at 'extreme risk' as they search for survivors.
'This work is being done at extreme risk to these individuals,' she said.
'Debris is falling on them as they do their work. We have structural engineers on-site to assure that they will not be injured, but they are proceeding because they are so motivated and they are taking extraordinary risk.'
Biden signed an emergency declaration just after midnight authorizing the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA to coordinate disaster relief efforts with state and local officials to 'save lives and to protect property and public health and safety, and to lessen or avert the threat of a catastrophe in Miami-Dade County'.
The president was updated on the tragedy Friday morning and is expected to address the condo collapse sometime during the day.
Biden could visit the site of the disaster in Miami next week 'if and when that would be appropriate' to the officials on the ground, a White House official told CNN.
The president said Thursday the federal government was ready to send in assistance but could not do so until Florida Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency - which he did not do until Thursday night.
'I say to the people of Florida, whatever help you want that the federal government can provide, we are waiting, just ask us, we'll be there,' Biden said.
DeSantis's office said the governor will visit families at the site on Friday.
While the focus now is on the hunt for survivors, questions are being asked about what caused the 1980s building to suddenly collapse. uestions continued to mount over the cause of the tragedy and whether it could have been avoided.
It emerged Thursday that scientists had warned that the condo building was sinking and in a potentially dangerous condition one year before it collapsed, while it was due a safety certification review for the first time in 40 years. It had also just undergone improvements to its roof.
Authorities have not yet determined what caused the collapse and Miami-Dade police have opened an investigation - though Mayor Cava said 'there has been no evidence found of foul play.'
People embrace each other on the beach close to the condo building as families of those missing and the local community grapple with the horrific crisis
A total of 55 condos collapsed on Thursday - more than a third of the 136 within the building. Around 80 percent of the building was reportedly occupied
Rescue workers walk among the rubble where part of a 12-story beachfront condo building collapsed Thursday
Early Friday rescue teams were seen searching for survivors on the balconies of the condos in parts of the building that were still standing
Soon after, officials said the focus of the search had turned to combing through the rubble after the parts of the building still standing were fully cleared
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue personnel spray water on a fire in the partially collapsed Champlain Towers South after a fire reignited during the search
The area around the 12-story condo tower is cordoned off as the rescue mission continues into its second day Friday
Surfside Town Manager Andy Hyatt told CNN Friday morning there had been no concerns about the building's safety prior to the disaster but said the town would carry out 'due diligence' to determine both what caused it and to ensure other buildings in the area are safe.
A 2020 study from Florida International University found the Champlain Towers South sea-view condo development was sinking at a rate of about 2 millimeters a year in the 1990s because it sits on reclaimed wetlands.
The oceanfront building was also due to have its safety recertified for the first time in 40 years this year which included the need for 'extensive repairs for rusted steel and damaged concrete' on parts of the structure.
It has also been revealed that the tower had recently undergone construction work on its roof, sparking fears this may have piled on additional weight to the sinking structure.
Search and rescue personnel have the grim task of pulling a covered body out of the rubble after the partial collapse
The tragic scene was likely to be repeated as rescuers pulled a covered body out of the wreckage with 99 people missing
A lightning strikes above the Champlain Towers South as Search and Rescue personnel work after the partial collapse of the Champlain Towers South in Surfside, north of Miami Beach
A shot from a video posted by the Miami Dade fire department shows firefighters in the rubble trying to find people
A Google Street View image shows the tower before its horrific collapse on Thursday
An advertisement for the Champlain Towers is seen in the 1980s. The Champlain Towers South sea-view condo development was built in 1981 by the late developer Nathan Reiber's company Nattel Construction at 8777 Collins Avenue in the southeast corner of Surfside but hasn't been updated significantly since then
Shimon Wdowinski, a professor in the Department of Earth and Environment at Florida International University, told USA Today he knew instantly which building had collapsed when he heard news reports because he had studied the building for the report published last year.
'I looked at it this morning and said 'Oh my god.' We did detect that,' he said.
Wdowinski said he found that Champlain Towers South was sinking at a rate of around 2 millimeters a year in the 1990s due to its position on wetlands but that rate could have slowed down or sped up since then.
However, the land's slow sinking alone would not have caused the building to collapse, he said.
'It was a byproduct of analyzing the data. We saw this building had some kind of unusual movement,' Wdowinski told USA Today.
The paper was published in April 2020 in the academic journal Ocean and Coastal Management and was part of a wider look at how buildings in Miami were sinking generally with rising sea levels caused by climate change.
Shimon Wdowinski, a professor in the Department of Earth and Environment at Florida International University, told USA Today that he knew instantly which building had collapsed when he heard news reports because he had studied the building for the report published last year
'In some locations, as in the eastern part of the city, the detected subsidence [sinking] is of a 12-story high condominium building,' the paper ominously warns.
It's not immediately clear if the 12-story building referenced in the paper is the condo that collapsed. It's also not clear if any officials took note of the paper when it comes to shoring up any dangerous conditions in the area.
In a video posted by FIU, Wdowinski said hundreds of buildings can be sinking bit-by-bit - and hundreds of buildings can have cracks, not just in Miami.
What would cause one to collapse would be an engineering problem, he said.
Wdowinski, who has previously conducted a number of land subsidence studies including one in Mexico City, noted in the video on Thursday that the tragic Mexico City Metro overpass collapse on May 3 that killed 26 people and injured 79 others had happened in an area where he had previously detected land subsidence.
The Champlain Towers South development was built in 1981 by the late developer Nathan Reiber's company Nattel Construction at 8777 Collins Avenue in the southeast corner of Surfside, but the structure hasn't been updated significantly since then.
It had a few two-bedroom units currently on the market at the time of the collapse with asking prices of $600,000 to $700,000. Some have sold for more than $2 million.
The area is a mix of new and old apartments, houses, condominiums and hotels, with restaurants and stores serving an international combination of residents and tourists.
Local officials have said the condo block was right in the middle of going through a recertification process required by Miami Dade building code - which dictates that buildings have to be re-certified every 40 years. The building was due to be recertified for the first time since its construction this year.
Kenneth Direktor, a lawyer for the Champlain Towers South Association, told The Miami Herald on Thursday that to prepare for the recertification process an engineer had been hired to plan 'structural and electrical' updates but that work hadn't started yet.
He told The New York Times that the building had been about to undergo 'extensive repairs for rusted steel and damaged concrete' but that he had seen nothing to suggest the collapse was related to issues identified in the engineering review.
Hundreds of firefighters were seen walking through the wreckage Thursday, picking up other survivors and carrying them away. Authorities fear many more people may be dead or remain trapped under the rubble
Direktor added that any waterfront building as old as the Champlain Towers would have some corrosion and concrete deterioration and insisted on Thursday that it was too early to speculate about what had happened.
The Miami Herald reported that Frank Morabito was the engineer retained by the Champlain towers but that he could not be reached for comment on Thursday.
Direktor told The Washington Post on Thursday that the building was 'thoroughly inspected' recently as part of the recertification process and that a report on the inspection was sent to town authorities.
He described the report's findings as 'fairly typical' for a building of its age and 'did not cast doubt on its structural integrity,' according to the outlet.
'There was nothing in the report that would have indicated a life-safety concern,' he told The Washington Post.
Rescue teams rescued 35 people from the damaged building and two people in the hours after it collapsed, including the young boy, were pulled from the rubble in the early stages of the search operation
The surveillance video, obtained by WSVN, shows portions of the 12-story Miami Beach apartment building crumbling and sending a huge cloud of debris into the air when it collapsed in the middle of the night
Surfside Mayor Charles W. Burkett said roof renovations were being done on the property but that they should not have contributed to the collapse.
'The building has literally pancaked. 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,' he said.
He instead described the collapse as a 'catastrophic failure' of the building.
'It's hard to imagine how this could have happened,' Burkett said. 'Buildings just don't fall down... There's no reason for this building to go down like that unless someone literally pulls the supports out from underneath.'
He suggested that potential causes could be the result of the foundations being washed out or a sinkhole.
JJI Supply, a general contracting company based in West Palm Beach, received a notice in April about the re-roofing of the building, The Real Deal reported. The outlet obtained records showing that Debra and Edward Campany of West Palm Beach lead the general contracting business.
Bruce Masia of KW Property Management & Consulting told Florida's Biz Journal that the ongoing roof renovation on the property could have added extra weight that the building couldn't withstand.
'Buildings don't fall down right away. They fall down because there are problems and those problems need attention,' he said.
However, Surfside Vice Mayor Tina Paul told The Washington Post on Thursday that Champlain Towers South passed a roof inspection on Wednesday - the day before the collapse.
Jeff Rose, a contractor whose parents live in the building, told the Miami Herald that he had done renovations for some of the condos and that work on the roof had started about six weeks ago.
He added that some concrete restoration work was also being done to fix old or damaged concrete but that the concrete work was not out of the ordinary.
'I didn't notice anything I haven't seen in many other buildings in South Florida,' Rose told the outlet.
However, an engineer who specializes in concrete repair projects told the Miami Herald that one potential structural flaw called 'concrete spalling' jumped out at him when he watched video of the collapse
The engineer, Greg Batista, described the flaw as 'concrete cancer' and said that it happens when salt water seeps into porous concrete causing steel rebar in the support beams to rust and expand - which can break the concrete and weaken the beams.
Rescuers pull a body out of the rubble of the collapsed condo in a harrowing sight as they work through the night
A front end loader shifts rubble mixed with furniture and household items, as rescue efforts continue where a wing of a 12-story beachfront condo building collapsed, late on Thursday, June 24, 2021, in the Surfside area of Miami
A Miami-Dade Fire Rescue team sprays water onto the rubble as rescue efforts continue where a wing of a 12-story beachfront condo building collapsed late on Thursday
A map shows the location of the Champlain Towers in the Miami Beach area
Surfside Commissioner Charles Kesl told Local 10 that there were also 'garage underground issues' found during various inspections recently relating to the recertification process.
'And, to my understanding, there were some cracks from that project - minor cracks - that were just patched up. Nothing, based on my understanding, to the magnitude that would indicate that there was a structural problem that could result in something so catastrophic,' Kesl said.
Kit Miyamoto, chair of the California Seismic Safety Commission also spoke to Anderson Cooper and said that Miami-Dade has actually good standards to examine buildings every year.
Miyamoto said it appears likely that corrosion was a culprit as the side of the building that collapsed was the side facing the ocean. Salt water could have gotten in and corroded the metal columns in the building.
If the soil is settling, that also could have affected the columns, as they get pulled in as the ground settles, Miyamoto said.
Miyamoto called rescue efforts 'extremely dangerous' but that 'there's definitely still hope' that survivors of the building collapse could be found.
Even with concrete floors sandwiched on top of each other, air pockets are likely. People have been found in similar wreckage 'days after,' he said.
Kobi Karp, an architect whose firm has worked on prominent Surfside and Miami Beach buildings, told The New York Times that the way the building had collapsed suggested a 'possible internal failure.'
He said the internal failure may have been caused by 'deterioration at the point where a horizontal slab of the building meets a vertical support wall' - which he explained to the outlet could lead one of the building's floors to suddenly fall and take the rest of the building down.
Karp said that such a deterioration could have happened either slowly over years or suddenly if the structure of the building was unintentionally damaged.
Some people in Surfside had previously raised concerns about the integrity of the aging building.
Barry Cohen, 63, the former vice mayor of Surfside, said he raised concerns years ago about whether nearby construction might be causing damage to the building after seeing cracked pavers on the pool deck.
In 2015, a resident also sued in 2015 claiming building management did nothing to repair cracks from water damage.
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