LIVE UPDATES: Tropical Storm Elsa brings Florida condo collapse search and rescue to a halt
Rescue work has temporarily paused as crews move to clear some of the rubble so teams can dig deeper, and Tropical Storm Elsa is still churning in the Caribbean.
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FILE - In this June 30, 2021, file photo, a man prays during a session of evening prayers, known as vespers, dedicated to people impacted by the partial collapse of the Champlain Towers South condo building, at St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Miami Beach, Fla. Church officials said between 18 and 22 of their parishioners were among the scores of people who have been missing since the collapse of the oceanfront condominium in adjacent Surfside. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)
Leaders of St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Miami Beach, Fla., say between 18 and 22 of their members, from 10 families, are missing after the Champlain Towers South collapse last Thursday.
They are among the 121 people who remained unaccounted for as of Friday evening.
"No other Christian house of worship is so close to the ground zero of the Champlain Towers South as St. Joseph," the Archdiocese of Miami said in a statement. "The remains tower in the distance and easily can be seen from the church grounds."
Juan Sosa, a priest at the church, had been to the collapsed towers many times in the past to visit parishioners who lived there.
“I am an optimist but sad about this horrible situation," he said in a statement. "It reminds me of Sept. 11, 2001, but I want to keep hope alive that they will rescue more like they rescued that boy we saw on television."
Search and rescue efforts have been hampered by fears about the remaining portion of the building's structural integrity as well as the approach of Tropical Storm Elsa, the brunt of which is currently forecast to miss the Miami area, but officials are monitoring its course.
In this satellite image provided by Maxar Technologies heavy-lift cranes are used to aid in the search and recovery operation at the partially collapsed Champlain Towers South condo building on Saturday, July 3, 2021, in Surfside, Fla. (Maxar Technologies via AP)
Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said rescue crews would again halt work in order for demolition crews to clear away some of the crumbled structure as Tropical Storm Elsa approaches the region amid concerns the remaining building could topple on its own.
The storm's track has shifted since earlier forecasts and current predictions place the storm on Florida's west coast by Tuesday. The Florida Keys could see tropical storm conditions Sunday night and Monday, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Miami-Date County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said during her evening news briefing Saturday that the Surfside collapse death toll remained steady at 24. She added that the families of 23 of those victims had been notified.
The number of people who are still unaccounted for is 121.
Gov. Ron DeSantis on Saturday issued a State of Emergency as Tropical Storm Elsa tracks to make landfall in Florida over the next few days.
Though the eye of the storm is not set to hit Maimi-Dade County, the weather impact could hamper search and rescue efforts at the site of the Champlain Towers collapse.
The National Hurricane Center declared Elsa a Category 1 Hurricane on Friday, but the system had weakened to a Tropical Storm by Saturday.
The storm could cause heavy rainfall, flash flooding and isolated tornado activity for much of the peninsula.
Demolition of the Surfside, Florida, condominium that collapsed on June 24 is being expedited "as soon as possible" as Tropical Storm Elsa heads for the state this week.
"…We have a building here in Surfside that is tottering — that is structurally unsound — and although the eye of the storm is not likely to pass over this direction, you could feel gusts in this area. We don't know," DeSantis said, adding that both Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava and Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett "have supported demolishing the building."
Once demolition begins, the process could be completed within 36 hours, the governor said.
Florida officials provided an update Saturday morning, saying that the death toll now stands at 24 people.
The state will proceed with the demolition of the remaining portion of the condo complex out of concern for safety. Gov. Ron DeSantis said the building will likely be brought down using charges, and the state will cover the charges for demolition.
"You'd hate to see another disaster if this building falls the wrong way," DeSantis said. "Given those difficult circumstances, Maimi-Dade and Surfside are making the right decision."
Hurricane Elsa weakened slightly early Saturday as it continued barreling through the Caribbean on its way to Florida, according to reports.
The hurricane was following a path that was expected to carry it west of the partial condo collapse in Surfside, Florida, by the time it reaches the state early Tuesday as a tropical storm, the Sun Sentinel of South Florida reported.
After posting wind gusts of 85 miles per hour late Friday as it neared Hispaniola, Elsa’s winds slowed to about 80 mph early Saturday, the National Hurricane Center said in a 2 a.m. advisory.
Chilling new video footage shows water gushing into the garage of a Florida condominium building moments before it collapsed last week.
The footage, reportedly shot by a tourist, shows water pouring down underneath Champlain Tower South in Surfside on Thursday shortly before the building pancaked, according to a report by ABC affiliate WLS-TV.
Adrianna Sarmiento told the station she and her husband were swimming in the pool at the nearby Bluegreen Vacations Solara Surfside Resort while on vacation when they heard a loud noise coming from the doomed building.
A Miami firefighter working at the site of the Florida building collapse Thursday was among a crew of search workers who recovered the remains of his own daughter, officials said Friday.
The grieving father wrapped the 7-year-old victim of last week’s Champlain Towers collapse in his jacket and placed a small US flag on the gurney, according to WPLG-TV. The child’s uncle was also among the rescuers.
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