BREAKING NEWS: Remainder of collapsed Miami condo building will be demolished with explosives Sunday after fears it could crumble hampered rescue efforts for the 124 people still missing as death toll rises to 24
A top Miami-Dade fire official on Saturday told family members of people missing in the rubble of a collapsed condo building that demolition workers planned to bring down the remainder of the building on Sunday.
Worries have intensified over the past week that the damaged structure could come tumbling down on its own, endangering the crews below and complicating the search for victims.
Fire Rescue Assistant Fire Chief Raide Jadallah told family members during a morning briefing that the building would be brought down 'as soon as possible. First thing tomorrow.'
But he cautioned that there 'may be some hiccups.' A follow-up meeting will be held in the afternoon to finalize details of the demolition, which could be a precarious operation as experts enter the building to bore into the structure to install explosives.
Concerns that the still-standing portion could tumble have curtailed the search in areas close to that section, and shifts detected by monitors early Thursday prompted a 15-hour suspension of the entire search until engineers determined the site was safe to restart.
Jadallah said the remnants of the demolished building would be removed immediately after with the intent of giving rescuers access for the first time to the garage area that is the focus of the search.
Search and rescue personnel work atop the rubble at the Champlain Towers South condo building, where scores of victims remain missing more than a week after it partially collapsed, Friday, July 2, 2021, in Surfside, Florida
This photo shows the 156-unit Crestview Towers, Friday, July 2, 2021 in North Miami Beach, Fla. The city of North Miami Beach ordered the evacuation of Crestview Towers, a condominium building Friday after a review found unsafe conditions about 5 miles from the site of last week's deadly collapse in South Florida
A Miami-Dade County Police boat patrols in front of the Champlain Towers South condo building, where search and rescue efforts continue more than a week after the building partially collapsed, Friday, July 2, 2021, in Surfside, Florida
Workers transport a stretcher with remains extricated from the rubble, near the Champlain Towers South condo building, where scores of people remain missing more than a week after it partially collapsed, Friday, July 2, 2021, in Surfside, Fla. Rescue efforts resumed Thursday evening after being halted for most of the day over concerns about the stability of the remaining structure.(AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
Search and rescue personnel remove remains on a stretcher as they work atop the rubble at the Champlain Towers South condo building where scores of people remain missing more than a week after it partially collapsed, Friday, July 2, 2021, in Surfside, Fla. Rescue efforts resumed Thursday evening after being halted for most of the day over concerns about the stability of the remaining structure
From left, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue personnel Fai Yeung and Chief Melanie C. Adams visit the makeshift memorial setup near the partially collapsed 12-story Champlain Towers South Condo in Surfside, Fla., Thursday, July 1, 2021. Search is paused because of structural concerns officials say. The apartment building partially collapsed on Thursday, June 24
Personal belongings are seen amid debris dangling from the remains of apartments sheared in half, in the still standing portion of the Champlain Towers South condo building, more than a week after it partially collapsed, Friday, July 2, 2021, in Surfside, Fla. Rescue efforts on the rubble pile below resumed Thursday evening after being halted for most of the day over concerns about the stability of the remaining structure