The remaining part of the partially collapsed 12-story Champlain Towers South condo building falls with a controlled demolition in Surfside, Florida, on July 4. Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Rescuers found three more bodies in the rubble of the Surfside, Florida, condo collapse on Monday, bringing the total death toll to at least 27, officials said at a briefing Monday. 118 people are still unaccounted for.
The latest: Rescue teams discovered the bodies after resuming their search for victims following the controlled demolition of the remaining portion of Champlain Towers South on Sunday night.
Details: Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava told AP the operation went «exactly as planned» about 10:30 p.m ET, allowing search efforts to continue after being paused Saturday for the demolition to take place.
- After explosives brought the remains of the building north of Miami Beach down, workers began clearing debris so rescuers could reach an underground garage.
- Cranes were again moving at the Champlain Towers South site early Monday — indicating that crews were «back in place» to work through rubble «from above and below,» AP noted.
The big picture: The controlled demolition took place ahead of the expected arrival of Tropical Storm Elsa in Florida, which officials feared could have caused the remaining building structure to collapse.
- President Biden has made an emergency declaration for Florida to assist with additional federal funding for debris removal and other measures.
- The definitive cause of the collapse is still unknown, but the president of the building’s condominium association warned three months before the disaster that damage highlighted in a 2018 engineer’s report had «gotten significantly worse.»
In photos: Scenes from the Surfside condo demolition
