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4 Dead, 159 Unaccounted For In Florida Condo Collapse


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https://www.npr.org/2021/06/25/1010217038/number-of-unaccounted-people-rises-to-159-at-surfside-condo-building-collapse

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There are now 159 people unaccounted for in the partial building collapse in Surfside, Fla., Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said Friday — a rise from 99 people a day earlier.

Three more deceased people were found in the rubble, bringing the number of fatalities so far to four.

"We will continue search and rescue because we still have hope that we will find people alive," Cava said at a press conference Friday. "That is why we are using our dogs and our sonar and our cameras — everything possible to seek places where there may still be people to be found."

The number of people who already have been accounted for stands at 120, up from 102.

President Biden approved an emergency declaration on Friday morning authorizing the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate disaster relief efforts.

The cause of the building's sudden collapse early Thursday morning remains unclear.

A reunification center has been established near the site of the building where families and friends await any news of their loved ones.

 

 

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Initial coverage really seemed to downplay this catastrophe. Just seeing a headline from yesterday about a partial building collapse and 1 dead, it appeared to be not a big deal until I saw the video. Reports late yesterday said 50 people unaccounted for, which seemed absurdly with how big of a building this was.

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Seems really weird how the middle collapsed first, and then one of the sides. I wonder what structural failure caused that. 

Terrible though, and to happen in the middle of the night with most people inside. Rescue and recovery also had to be halted because of bad thunderstorms. 

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4 minutes ago, Alpha_TATEr said:

JFC that's horrible. seriously hoping to start hearing about some rescues. 

There has been some, everyone was evacuated successfully from the remaining part, and I believe 2 were pulled from the rubble, a mother who had to have her leg amputated on site and her child. The unaccounted for rising from 50, to 99 to 159 isn't promising though.

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https://www.cnn.com/2021/06/24/us/what-to-know-about-the-surfside-building-collapse/index.html

Inspection: A study last year showed signs the building was sinking at a rate of about 2 millimeters a year between 1993 and 1999, said Shimon Wdowinski, a professor with Florida International University's Institute of Environment.
Sinking was unique to the area of Champlain Towers South, not surrounding buildings, he said. Buildings in nearby western Miami Beach, which was built on reclaimed wetlands, were moving at higher rates, "so we didn't think it was something unusual," he said.
While the sinking alone likely would not cause the tower's collapse, it could be a contributing factor because "if one part of the building moves with respect to the other, that could cause some tension and cracks," Wdowinski said.
Over the last several months, the building has undergone "thorough engineering inspections" in preparation for its 40-year certification, said Kenneth Direktor, an attorney for the condo tower residents' association, and "nothing like this was foreseeable."
Ongoing construction: At the time of the collapse, the building was undergoing work on its concrete roof, Burkett said, but it's unclear whether the work was a factor in the collapse. Work was being done to meet "40-year standards," a strengthening of the building code -- regarding updates and improvements -- enacted following Hurricane Andrew in 1992, Miami-Dade County Commissioner Sally Heyman said.
An engineer who inspected the building determined it needed repairs, but the only repair underway was the replacement of the roof, Direktor said. It was the attorney's understanding the engineer was helping the city investigate the collapse, he said.
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Horrifying. Hard to believe there won't be significant causalities after watching that video. The people in the remaining part of the building are incredibly lucky. That is awful about the mother who had to have her leg amputated on site.

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1 hour ago, VanHammersly said:

Can't believe it took this long for this to get a mention in here.  Freaking awful.  This is literally my worst nightmare and I can't think of anything more terrifying than a tall building just collapsing underneath you.

A tall building collapsing on top of you?

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34 minutes ago, Kz! said:

A tall building collapsing on top of you?

Obviously I don’t want that to happen either but a building collapsing beneath me is much worse.  I don’t go up in high rises. Can’t do it. Haven’t in years. 

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1 minute ago, greend said:

If only 4 people die that would be a miracle

Yeah, I think miracle is the right word. Watching that video makes it seem impossible. Like someone else said, it happened at the worst possible time. If it happened in the middle of the day you'd hope many were at work.

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Truly awful and I do fear the death count will increase dramatically.  They had a family on GMA this morning that was literally 15ft. away.  How do you even check for a sink hole?  It's Florida it's sand and they happen often down there.

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27 minutes ago, 4for4EaglesNest said:

I hate to say it.  But if only 100 people die it would be a miracle.  With the amount of people still missing?  It's gonna be a touch weekend once the numbers start coming in. 

 

Amazing this doesn't happen more often.  That building is right on the ocean.  The ground is always shifting and changing.  Especially when it is mostly sand.  

Architects are incredibly intelligent people. I'm sure it was built well. The problem is monitoring and doing the right thing over time (even if that means eventually determining the building is uninhabitable).

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11 hours ago, toolg said:

9 dead. And 156 people still missing after 4 days. Time to fear the worst for them. What a terrible tragedy. :sad:

 

Agree, if anyone else is still alive I would be shocked. What a terrible shame

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