LIVE UPDATES: Damaged Surfside condo slated for partial demolition as Elsa nears
Demolition specialists have finished laying the groundwork for bringing down a portion of a collapsed South Florida condo building some time between late Sunday and early Monday. Officials say the demolition will alleviate concerns that the damaged structure was at risk of falling and will allow crews to complete search and rescue efforts that were suspended on Saturday.
Coverage for this event has ended.
Demolition specialists have finished laying the groundwork for bringing down a portion of a collapsed South Florida condo building sometime between late Sunday and early Monday. Officials say the demolition will alleviate concerns that the damaged structure was at risk of falling and will allow crews to complete search and rescue efforts that were suspended on Saturday.
“Our top priority is that the building come down as soon as possible, no matter what time that occurs and as safely as possible,” Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava told a news conference Sunday. “Bringing down this building in a controlled manner is critical to expanding the scope of our search-and-rescue effort.”
Cava urged surrounding residents to stay indoors, keep their doors and windows closed and run their a/c by recirculating the air.
Up to 210 rescuers will be poised to restart the search as soon as the site is declared safe after the blast, he said. Rescue officials have said that would be 15 minutes to an hour after the detonation.
Surfside, Florida manager Andrew Hyatt is pushing back on the notion that town officials are responsible for slowing down desperately needed structural repairs to a 12-story building in the years leading up to its collapse last month, killing dozens of residents.
After the Miami Herald reported that it took more than a month for Surfside to respond to plans submitted by the building's board in May, Hyatt said the issues under discussion were preliminary plans unrelated to structural work and not permits to begin repairs.
The National Hurricane Center issued a tropical storm warning for the Florida Keys, in addition to storm watches for the state's southwestern coast Sunday morning as Tropical Storm Elsa headed toward the state.
Elsa, which battered the southern coasts of Haiti and the Dominican Republic on Saturday and Sunday, was downgraded from a Category 1 hurricane Saturday morning. The storm has left at least three people dead, one in St. Lucia and two in the Dominican Republic.
Sunday morning's tropical storm warning said it covers from Craig Key westward to the Dry Tortugas, while a tropical storm watch is in effect from Craig Key eastward to Ocean Reef. The tropical storm watch for Florida's southwest coast is from Flamingo north to Bonita Beach.
Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett said the demolition of the remaining structure at the Champlain Tower site could provide a "green light" to enable a more robust search and rescue effort, which was temporarily suspended Saturday afternoon.
All resources and tactics have already been operating at full speed, but the rescue effort has faced a number of hurdles, periodically stopping due to weather, and at points stopping due to a fire that was burning deep in the rubble itself.
The plan is to demolish the building in a "westward direction," which will prevent any damage or issue with the existing rubble pile and allow potential greater access to the site.
Sometimes, the line between life and death in such a calamity can be as seemingly random as whether an apartment had an ocean or street view. While 126 residents, mostly from the ocean-view units, are among the missing nine days later, many others barely escaped.
Alfredo and Marian Lopez were asleep when the first thundering blast jolted them awake. Moments later, a second boom, much louder than the first, shook the couple's bed in their sixth-floor Surfside, Florida apartment.
Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said Sunday that residents should remain indoors during the demolition, which could occur as soon as today.
Officials will provide a window for demolition as soon as a timeline is clear.
Cava said the demolition team will use "energetic felling," which involves small detonations that rely on using gravity to keep the collapse to the building's footprint.
While the building collapse should cause minimal issue, dust and other particles may cause issues for people in the area. Authorities will establish a perimeter around the site to prevent anyone from getting too close during the demolition.
Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett said that the remaining structure could come down as soon as today as officials race to mitigate possible impacts from Tropical Storm Elsa.
"As of last night, the crews were 80% complete with their preparations to bring the building down," Burkett told CBS show "Face the Nation." "We need to get back to work as soon as possible, we need to get this building taken down and we need to move forward with the rescue of all those people who are still left in the rubble."
The plan is to bring down the building in a "westward direction" to avoid the existing debris pile and allow rescue workers to potentially access areas they previously could not.
First responders searching the rubble of the Champlain Towers condo complex have received support from the community in many forms - including hand-made cards from kids.
“It stopped me in my tracks,” Omar Blanco, a Miami-Dade Fire Rescue captain, told the Washington Post. The card was from a child he never met, and said "Thank you for what you're doing."
Over 500 cards and letters from children have been hand-delivered to first responders on the scene, with hundreds more expected as the search continues.
Miami Beach announced Thursday that it will replace its already-cancelled fireworks show with a symbolic gesture of unity with the people of Surfside.
Officials have asked residents to "light a candle, phone flashlight - anything they have available - and stand outside for a moment of remembrance."
The gesture is meant to pay tribute to the victims and support the families and first responders involved in the tragedy.
The official announcement can be read here.
Miami-Dade police overnight identified two additional victims of the Surfside condo complex collapse site.
Police identified Graciela Cattarossi, 48, and Gonzalo Torre, 81; both were recovered on Thursday, July 2.
Cattarossi lived with her parents, and her sister was visiting at the time of the collapse. All three remain missing.
Gonzalo lived with his wife, Maria, who is yet to be found.
22 of the 24 individuals confirmed deceased have been identified.
More than a week after a 12-story building collapse left at least 24 people dead and more than 100 still unaccounted for, Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett said the horrible tragedy has devastated the town while also bringing out the best in the community.
"It’s been a tale of two cities, where it’s created horror but it’s also brought out the most incredible amount of support and love and charity that you could ever believe," Burkett told Fox News.
Search and rescue teams had to temporarily pause operations around 4 p.m. on Saturday while engineers assess the rubble and prepare for demolition of the part of the building that still stands, fearing it might not withstand the winds from Tropical Storm Elsa, should it make landfall near the site.
More than a week after a 12-story building collapse left at least 24 people dead and more than 100 still unaccounted for, Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett said the horrible tragedy has devastated the town while also bringing out the best in the community.
"It’s been a tale of two cities, where it’s created horror but it’s also brought out the most incredible amount of support and love and charity that you could ever believe," Burkett told Fox News.
Search and rescue teams had to temporarily pause operations around 4 p.m. on Saturday while engineers assess the rubble and prepare for demolition of the part of the building that still stands, fearing it might not withstand the winds from Tropical Storm Elsa, should it make landfall near the site.
Live Coverage begins here