Surfside building collapse latest: Bidens to visit site amid ‘frantic search’ for survivors

(ABC News) — At least 11 people are dead and 150 others remain unaccounted for after a 12-story residential building partially collapsed in South Florida’s Miami-Dade County last week, officials said.

A massive search and rescue operation entered its sixth day on Tuesday, as crews continued to carefully comb through the pancaked pile of debris in hopes of finding survivors. The partial collapse occurred at around 1:15 a.m. local time last Thursday at the Champlain Towers South condominium in the small, beachside town of Surfside, about 6 miles north of Miami Beach. Approximately 55 of the oceanfront complex’s 136 units were destroyed, according to Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Assistant Chief Raide Jadallah.

So far, 136 people who were living or staying in the condominium at the time of the disaster have been accounted for, according to Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, who noted that the numbers are “very fluid” and “will continue to change.”

President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden will travel to Surfside on Thursday, according to a statement from the White House.

Hope not lost amid ‘frantic search’ for survivors

The remaining structure that still stands was cleared by rescue crews last week and all resources have since shifted focus to the debris, according to Jadallah. Hundreds of first responders and volunteers have been working around the clock to locate any survivors or human remains in the rubble. Crews have cut a 125-foot long, 20-foot wide and 40-foot deep trench through the pile to help enhance their search, according to Levine Cava.

As of Monday afternoon, crews had still not physically reached the bottom of the pile but cameras placed inside showed voids and air pockets where people could be trapped, according to Jadallah, who said they are not yet ready to transition their efforts from rescue to recovery.

“This is a frantic search to continue to see that hope, that miracle, to see who we can bring out of this building alive,” Alvarez told ABC News in an interview Monday on “Good Morning America.”

The conditions on the pile are “bad” and “not ideal” for rescuers, Alvarez said, due to heat, humidity and rain. But search and rescue efforts are still continuing 24-hours a day.

Crews are using various equipment and technology, including underground sonar systems that can detect victims and crane trucks that can remove huge slabs of concrete from the pile, according to Alvarez.

Alvarez, who was among the rescuers sent to Haiti in 2010 to help find survivors after a devastating earthquake, urged those who have loved ones missing to hold out hope.

“You’ve got to have hope and you’ve got to have faith,” he said. “Every single task force from the state of Florida is here.”

Some of the first responders are members of the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue’s urban search and rescue team, Florida Task Force-1, which is part of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s National Urban Search and Rescue Response System and has been deployed to disasters across the country and around the world. Search and rescue teams from Israel and Mexico have also joined the efforts in Surfside.

Although officials have continued to express hope that more people will be found alive, no survivors have been discovered in the rubble of the building since the morning it partially collapsed. Bodies, however, have been uncovered throughout the site, which crews have categorized into grids, according to Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Chief Alan Cominsky

Officials have asked families of the missing to provide DNA samples and unique characteristics of their loved ones, such as tattoos and scars, to help identify those found in the wreckage.

Hundreds of people gathered on the beach near the Champlain Towers South on Monday night for an emotional candlelight vigil to honor the victims.

Michael Noriega’s 92-year-old grandmother is among the missing residents and still has not been found. But while he and his family were praying together at the site of the disaster, Noriega said they spotted a birthday card and family photos belonging to his grandmother amid the debris. That, he said, gives them hope.

“We want to stand in the gap, in the middle for so many people that were directly or indirectly affected by this to give them hope that they’re not alone,” Noriega told ABC News on Monday.

What went wrong

The cause of the partial collapse to a building that has withstood decades of hurricanes remains unknown. The Miami-Dade Police Department is leading an investigation into the incident.

So far, there is no evidence of foul play, according to Levine Cava.

“Of course, it’s not ruled out,” the Miami-Dade County mayor told ABC News last Friday. “Nothing’s ruled out. But, at this point, nothing to indicate that.”

Built in the 1980s, the Champlain Towers South was up for its 40-year recertification and had been undergoing roof work, according to Surfside officials.

The partial collapse happened as the Champlain Towers South Condo Association was preparing to start a new construction project to make updates, according to Kenneth Direktor, a lawyer for the association. Direktor said the building had been through extensive inspections and the construction plans had already been submitted to the town but the only work that had begun was on the roof.

“Nothing like this has ever been seen, at least not in the 40 years I’ve been doing this,” Direktor told ABC News last Thursday.