Status: 03.07.2021 6:40 p.m.
The remaining rubble of the partially collapsed residential building near Miami is to be demolished on Sunday. Two other bodies were found at the site of the accident. The number of deaths rose to 24.
Two other bodies have been found in the rubble of the collapsed skyscraper in the coastal town of Surfside near Miami. This means that 24 dead have now been confirmed, 124 people are still missing, said the mayor of Miami-Dade, Daniella Levine Cava. One of the recently recovered fatalities, according to Cava, was the seven-year-old daughter of a firefighter.
Cava also announced the demolition of the entire building. You have signed a corresponding order. At the same time, she emphasized that the top priority of the authorities was still the search and rescue operation on the building.
Demolition could be difficult
Raide Jadallah of the Miami-Dade District Fire Department said the demolition should begin Sunday. However, there could be difficulties with the demolition. It is planned that experts will go into the structure to place explosives. In the past few days, worries had increased that the remains of the building could collapse.
The twelve-story residential building Champlain Towers South had partially collapsed on the night of June 24th. The exact cause of the accident is unknown. However, in 2018 an expert report had already found “major structural damage” to the building, which was completed in 1981.
Similar house in Miami cleared
About ten kilometers from the scene of the accident, a residential building in the city of North Miami Beach was vacated on Friday due to safety concerns. According to local media, an inspection of the Crestview Towers residential complex revealed risky defects in the construction and its electrical system.
The city administration emphasized that the evacuation of the building was a precautionary measure. After the accident in Surfside, the authorities began to inspect similar high-rise apartment buildings.