Death Toll Rises to 18, Including 2 Children in Florida Building Collapse

It’s been one week since the partial collapse of the Champlain Towers South building in Surfside Florida. Yesterday, rescuers found the bodies of four additional victims including 2 children which brings the total to 18 people that have been pronounced dead and 145 still unaccounted for. The children were identified as siblings ages 4 and 10 years old. So far, 16 of the 18 victims have been identified. Mayor Danielle Cava said “any loss of life — especially given the unexpected, unprecedented nature of this event — is a tragedy, but the loss of our children is too great to bear.” Rescue teams have been working around the clock in an effort to find those missing. This morning the search was paused around 2 a.m. over concerns about ‘building stability’ from engineers on the scene. Concerns include 6 to 12 inches of movement in a large column hanging from the structure that could fall and cause damage to other support columns in the garage area, and slight movement in concrete floor slabs in another part of the structure are cause for concern. President Biden and First Lady Jill are in Florida today to meet with the search and rescue personnel, first responders, the families of the victims and those still unaccounted for.