Florida building collapse: rescuers scramble to find survivors as families cling to hope
- Four people were confirmed dead and 159 unaccounted for following the collapse of the Champlain Towers South condominium in Surfside near Miami
- Rescuers tread carefully through the unstable debris looking for survivors, removing rubble by hand while battling rainstorms and fires
Three more bodies were pulled from the rubble overnight after one person was reported dead on Thursday, and there were 159 people presumed missing as of Saturday morning.
“We have one goal in mind now and that is to bring people out alive and that’s all we’re doing,” Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett told reporters on Friday. “We’re not stopping.”
Rescuers walked carefully through the unstable debris looking for survivors, removing rubble by hand while battling intermittent rainstorms and fires that periodically broke out within the site.
Teams from Mexico and Israel arrived to help relieve the locally based crews, many of whom have also travelled to disaster sites around the world. Atop the pile, others wielded hammers and picks looking for signs of life. Heavy equipment scraped away the top layer.