Death Toll Rises as Search Continues at Site of Partial Building Collapse in Florida

An update on the partial building collapse in Florida, during a press conference this morning, officials confirmed that the death toll has risen to 4 and there are 159 people still unaccounted for with 120 people located. Search and rescue operations are continuing around the clock and President Biden has also ordered federal assistance to support the response. In a statement, the White House said “The president’s action authorizes the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA, to coordinate all disaster relief efforts.”

Yesterday one death was confirmed and three other bodies were found in the wreckage overnight. The ‘Champlain Towers South’ building is located a few miles north of Miami Beach. It is currently unknown why the building collapsed. Surfside town manager Andy Hyatt said officials do not know how many people were in the building at the time of the collapse. He said “we know that it was about 80% occupied but that doesn’t mean that there was 80% occupied with people.” And added “we know that some families around here travel quite a bit.”