Rescue workers face stormy conditions and an approaching tropical storm, as they work around the clock, searching for survivors at the site of the condo collapse in Surfside, Florida.
Twenty-eight victims have now been confirmed dead.
As Tropical Storm Elsa nears Florida, first responders only stop for lightning. They comb through the rubble despite strong winds and heavy rain.
“I’m in awe of the men and women of the USAR task force teams who’ve been continuing to brave dangerous and changing conditions,” said Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava.
One member of the Israeli Defense Forces Search and Rescue Brigade said people in the area gave them a lot of goodwill and love.
“We work around the clock 24/7 in changing weather and look at these people and feel that our actions influence their mood and the way they see that we are willing to do everything to save the trapped,” shared Col. Elad Edri.
The mayor of Surfside says the search is going at 100 percent capacity. Rescuers can now get to those areas that were too risky before. Demolishing the remaining part of Champlain Towers South freed crews to access those parts.
“The heavy equipment is now able to move around the site as needed,” explained Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett. “The looming threat of that building, the dangerous situation where debris could fall down is now eliminated.”
That news encourages officials and families who are trying to remain positive when it comes to the more than 100 people still missing.
“What’s driving us right now is hope, the hope that the family has of us being successful in finding their loved ones,” said Capt. Ignatius Carroll of the City of Miami Fire Rescue.
Sixty-four-year-old Iliana Monteagudo is a survivor of the building collapse, barely escaping.
“I lost everything. I lost everything,” she shared. “Don’t forget the people that survived; we have to start again our life, from zero.”
Officials say they have already removed nearly five million pounds of concrete from the area where the building collapsed.
The latest forecasts show Tropical Storm Elsa mostly sparing South Florida where the search is going on, but another day of unsettled weather is anticipated.
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