Florida building collapse: death toll rises to 27 as search resumes in Surfside

The bodies were found following the managed demolition of the remaining part of Champlain Towers South complex

Using a method called ‘energetic felling’, crews employed small, strategically placed small explosives and relied on gravity to bring down the building in place

1-MIN READ1-MIN

Rescuers search for victims at a collapsed South Florida condo building. Photo: Miami Herald via AP

Published: 12:03am, 6 Jul 2021Updated: 1:46am, 6 Jul 2021

Three more bodies were found in the debris of a partially collapsed US condominium on Monday, bringing the total confirmed dead to 27, after the remaining parts of the Florida building were demolished overnight.

The bodies were found after suspended search-and-rescue efforts resumed following the managed demolition of the remaining part of Champlain Towers South complex in Surfside, where many remain missing, authorities said.

At about 10.30pm local time on Sunday, explosives brought down the rest of the partially collapsed 12-storey building in Surfside that initially crumbled on June 24.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, centre, surveys the site of the rubble on July 5, 2021. Photo: Miami Herald via AP

Video footage of the managed implosion showed the structure falling and throwing up plumes of smoke.

Using a method called “energetic felling”, crews employed small, strategically placed small explosives and relied on gravity to bring down the building in place, said Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava.