"Three families that I know well," he . Sharon Schechter, 60, described her escape to WPLG , saying she believes she was only one of two people who survived from her floor when the 12-story oceanfront Champlain Towers South near Miami partially . Your email address will not be published. Firefighters on Friday declared the end of their search for bodies at the site of a collapsed Florida condo building, concluding a month of painstaking work removing . In May:DeSantis signs condo reform bill a response to Surfside building collapse into law. Nine of the 98 Surfside victims may have SURVIVED the initial condo collapse: Fire rescue logs show woman was alive in rubble for TEN HOURS. Please enter valid email address to continue. "That was a very difficult night," Scheinhaus said. Recordings of 911 calls released from the scene of the Florida condominium building collapse reveal the chaos and . It's still unclear what caused the condominium, which has withstood decades of hurricanes, to partially collapse. GARCIA-NAVARRO: But you know if you'd done that, you might have lost your life. 2023 Cable News Network. The familys condo was on the ninth floor of the 12-story Champlain Towers South in Surfside, Florida. WOMAN TRAPPED IN CONDO RUBBLE PLEADED WITH RESCUERS TO SAVE HER. For more information on this site, please read our Privacy Policy, and Terms of Service. He and his wife got the kids from their beds and ran for their lives. We're here! The couple lived in apartment No. Its about the lives that are there.. ALVAREZ: Yes. After a failed attempt duringthe 2022 legislative session, lawmakers in May returned to Tallahasseeandpassed legislation designed to prevent a similar disaster. And at that point, I got up, and I said, wow. Some of the victims of the devastating condo collapse in Surfside, Fla., may have been alive for hours after the building first caved in but were never found alive by rescue . All my friends were giving me luggage and clothes and things. And I don't know - we just - we climbed out of rubble. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. First responders arrive at the partially . All I saw was cement, rubble, wood, people yelling Help me,' Rosenthal said. The earthquake happened 100 miles off the coast of Florida and experts are weighing in whether it could have had anything to do with the Surfside condo collapse almost a week later. She kept telling me what to do. appreciated. That was my home. Susana, I want to ask you, first of all, how are you doing? Steve Rosenthal said he was woken up when he heard a loud noise and felt his unit shaking. Several of their pets also went missing. Have a news tip? This was in a matter of seconds, out of nowhere. "Any time we hear like, 'boom,' or just something that's very unusual, anything that brings those flashbacks, it's just terrifying and it's very traumatizing," he said. And there were no elevators, just open holes. Just because the body gets mangled doesnt mean thats what killed you, Caprara said. All rights reserved. We had to wait for fire rescue to come up with the ladder. Their condo in Surfside had collapsed, and they had just narrowly survived. ALVAREZ: Yes. , even as police and forensic specialists continue working to identify human remains. GARCIA-NAVARRO: And for more information or to report the status of Champlain Tower residents who are unaccounted for, please call 305-614-1819 or 305-993-1071. Did anyone survive the Surfside condo partial collapse? A massive search-and-rescue effort is underway following the partial collapse of a 12-story condominium building in Surfside, Miami, early June 24, 2021. Initially, 150 people were thought to be missing. Support . ALVAREZ: I can't imagine. The building's shocking anddevastating collapselast month killed at least 97 people inside but the Nirs managed to get out alive. Market data provided by Factset. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. All rights reserved. The authoritative record of NPRs programming is the audio record. The couple said their 22-year-old son and 14-year-old daughter were "mere feet away" from the part of the building that collapsed. "Nothing like this has ever been seen, at least not in the 40 years I've been doing this," Direktor told ABC News. He thought the ordeal could not be real, but he said he knew it was real when dust fell on his face and saw more of it out of his window. According to The Telegraph, another Haitian man survived underneath a pile of rubble for over three weeks by drinking sewage water . A Miami-Dade County grand jury on Wednesday released a series of recommendations for condo safety throughout Florida after a deep examination of the deadly collapse in Surfside earlier this year. "While we're running, we're thinking, we don't know what's going on. The family is now living in a hotel and dealing with the trauma of that night. 2. He said his mom liked the unit on the ground floor better and chose that one a decision that, six months later, played a role in their survival. It's not like her, and it's not like me, and when I woke up at 5:30, I understood why." "When we measure subsidence or when we see movement of the buildings, it's worth checking why it happens," Wdowinski, who analyzed space-based radar data, said in a statement Thursday. What did you see? "I don't think I've really processed what happened.". "I don't have anything," said the 62-year-old survivor of the condominium . WSVN-TVSunbeam Television Corp But, I mean, I can't get into the building. I won't leave. There was people alive in there. 1:33. Hes based in Tallahassee. ALVAREZ: Yes, I go every day. Balboa said he told the uncle, Sorry I couldnt get to his sister faster.. I closed the balcony doors. About the . Although he and his family are safe, Longobardi said they are all "shocked. 'Like it had been hit by a missile': Residents who survived the collapse describe being inside. 903 of the Champlain Towers South. A class-action complaint updated on Nov. 10 alleges that the towers were badly damaged and destabilized because of excavation and construction at the neighboring 18-story Eighty Seven Park condominium, according to court documents. "Specifically, FEMA is authorized to identify, mobilize, and provide at its discretion, equipment and resources necessary to alleviate the impacts of the emergency," the statement noted. A Haitian man once survived for two weeks within the wreckage of a building after a . Capponi's organization, Global Empowerment Mission, has distributed roughly $75,000 in gift cards among surfside survivors, and he's also working with hotel and condo owners to find places they can live for the next two months. SUSANA ALVAREZ: Not well. An attorney for James River Insurance Company wrote to the judge in one case this week that it plans to "voluntarily tender its entire limit" from the associations policy toward resolving claims. And the fire escape door wouldn't open, but I saw people on the other side, and I banged. The action authorizes the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) "to coordinate all disaster relief efforts which have the purpose of alleviating the hardship and suffering caused by the emergency on the local population, and to provide appropriate assistance for required emergency measures, authorized under Title V of the Stafford Act, to save lives and to protect property and public health and safety, and to lessen or avert the threat of a catastrophe in Miami-Dade County," according to a statement from the White House. And we'll have more details on that, plus more information on the collapse and what it might mean for other similarly constructed buildings in the area elsewhere in the show. What are the survivors - you know, you - who managed to get out, what are you talking about? A Miami-Dade county official told ABC News that there's real concern about the structural integrity of the remaining building, particularly from dangling wires and portions of concrete. A partially collapsed building is seen early Thursday, June 24, 2021, in the Surfside area of Miami, Fla. A woman who survived the collapse of a condo building in Florida has shared how she escaped. A Warner Bros. I don't know because I grabbed nothing else. Once in her apartment, they made their way to the balcony and flagged down firefighters who rescued them. Miami condo owners warned of major structural damage in 2018. 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He thought the cause of the collapse was a gas explosion and wanted to get a safe distance away. On Tuesday, Balboa told CNN in a phone call that the boys uncle reached out to him on June 28 on Facebook, and also called him to say thank you for saving his nephew. GARCIA-NAVARRO: As you just heard there, Ms. Alvarez said that the residents of Champlain Towers were reassured by a representative from the town of Surfside that the building was safe. "We cannot say what is the reason for that from the satellite images but we can say there was movement here.". Raysa Rodriguez, a retired postal worker who lived at Champlain Towers South for 17 years and was close to paying off her mortgage, described in a lawsuit she filed against the condominium association how crashing sounds roused her from bed the night of the collapse. Rescue crews . Initially, 150 people were thought to be missing. Multiple survivors have recounted that their entire apartment was rattling before the collapse. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); The familys condo was on the ninth floor of the 12-story Champlain Towers South in Surfside, Florida. It wasnt about my home. "We tried knocking on people's doors," Gabe said. When part of the 12-story Champlain Towers South condo building in Surfside, Florida, collapsed early Thursday, it left a pile of rubble where the beachside residences once stood. Thats a horrifying thought, Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett told the outlet. Osin-Cohenthen returned to her apartment, taking along with her an elderly couple she came across that was also trying to find their way out. As of Thursday . He said there was water damage to the complex, but that is common for oceanfront properties and wouldn't have caused the collapse. As they stepped onto the beach, Alfredo said he could hear the cries for help coming from the wreckage. Ryan Logan, the American Red Cross' regional disaster officer for south Florida, said the organization has been helping about 18 families, and some of them have been looking for ways they can help other victims. They chose to live in Champlain Towers South. But, at this point, nothing to indicate that.". Fires have flared up throughout the day, adding to the danger for the search and rescue teams, according to the official. Then their bedroom began to shake. "That's kind of what's hard.". As the search for survivors enters itsfifth day,those who escaped are recounting harrowingtales of survival after last weeks condo collapse in Surfside. Albert and Janette Aguero suddenly awoke early Thursday to what they said sounded like a "really loud clap of thunder." Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Its a miracle. At 11:05 a.m., about 10hours after the condo caved-in, the logs noted that rescuers lost voice contactwith a female victim and requested backup and canines to scour the basement. My family's having a hard time," Gabe said. Survivors recount harrowing escape from collapsed condo. "I looked to my left and half of the apartment is gone, look forward and the elevator shaft is there and there's no elevator, it's just two holes," Aguero told NBC South Florida. That was my home. I - and I just want my cat back. The NIST received $22 million in supplemental funding from Congress to complete its investigation. "She lived there for a long time," said Adam Schwartzbaum, her attorney, "and she was planning to live there for the rest of her life. They have been hampered by torrential rain and fires and have had to move with excruciating care. Required fields are marked *. Direktor said the construction plans had already been submitted to the Town of Surfside but the only work that had begun was on the roof. I left my cat behind. They were screaming. Nearly 20 people were rescued from the rubble of the World Trade Center following the terrorist attacks on 9/11. I mean, this doesn't just happen. Nicholas Balboa said he had been walking his dog past midnight on June 24 when he felt the ground shake and saw that a major section of the condo complex had collapsed. Updated on: July 14, 2021 / 9:25 PM No other survivors were found even after an international coalition of rescue workers labored for two weeks, working 24 hours a day, to dig through a 40-foot high pile of rubble. I mean, did you have any idea that the building was unsound? The judges initial approval came May 28, the day after attorneys for the families of victims reached an agreement to avoid a protracted court battle that could have taken years to resolve. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. Crews searched for hours but were unable to find her, the report said. Everything I owned was in that apartment, but I don't care. We got to the stairwell and when we opened the door, that's when everything really hit, because half the wall to the stairwell was missing, it was kind ofopen airstairs, so now we're just racing down as fast as possible.". GARCIA-NAVARRO: Susana Alvarez, thank you very much for talking with us. Always. She did - to yoga with me. And I ran out the front door. ", Now they have to rebuild their lives from scratch. And - so I went around the corner, and that's when I saw that the building was missing. Areas where land is subsiding are more likely to experience more serious effects of sea level rise, according to the study, which was published in the international journal Ocean & Coastal Management. They were both identified by the Miami-Dade Police Department on June 26. Its the only way they can heal.. First published on July 14, 2021 / 2:21 PM. "We were screaming 'Help! GARCIA-NAVARRO: Where are you staying right now? We reached out to a Surfside spokesperson for a response but did not hear back. The June 24 collapse killed 97 people 96 bodies were pulled from the debris and one died at a hospital after being removed and one person who is missing has still not been identified among the remains. Search efforts . It wasn't until they opened the door to the hallway that they realized what had actually happened. It was like a sandstorm. Search and Rescue personnel work at a partial collapse building . So far, there is no evidence of foul play, according to Levine Cava. Albert Aguero (top left), his wife Janette Aguero (bottom right), his son Justin Willis (top right) and his daughter Athena Aguero (bottom left) speak to ABC News for an interview on "Good Morning America" in Surfside, Fla. on June 25, 2021. It was not a clap of thunder and it wasn't a storm; it was something else," Albert Aguero told ABC News' T.J. Holmes in an interview Friday on "Good Morning America.". Still, friends and even complete strangers have been helping replace what she's lost. "There was no . Surfside is a few miles north of Miami Beach. What we know about the building collapse so far. The 60-year-old told WPLG she had to climb over rubble through the dark with her dog. At least two members of the family were seriously injured in the collapse one is still missing. Survivors recounted hearing signs of the collapse and attempting to escape the building early Thursday morning. But, The June 24 collapse killed 97 people 96 bodies were pulled from the debris and one died at a hospital after being removed and. They managed to survive the collapse after Sara Nir heard loud noises and then saw the parking deck collapse. Gabe told his sister to leave the apartment with him, and when they got to the lobby, they joined their mom and started to run. An investigation by USA Today found that at least nine of the 98 people killed in the tragedy initially survived the June 24 collapse, including one woman who was possibly still alive under the rubble 10 hours later. He cannot help but wish, though, that a . Gabe said it sounded like construction but in the middle of the night, it was suspect. ", She made her way to a nearby stairwell and tried to exit on the pool deck, but the door was jammed. Officials said Thursday they're making plans for the likely demolition of all parts of the building that didn't collapse. Steven Rosenthalwasasleepin a corner unit of the12-story Champlain Towers South buildingthat collapsed last Thursday when he heard the loudest thunderclap times a hundred that I ever heard in my life.. The family had their choice of two units, Gabe said. This story has been shared 155,909 times. We're going to hear now from one of the survivors of that collapse. WSVN 7News | Miami News, Weather, Sports | Fort Lauderdale, Damage forces evacuation of Miami Beach apartment building, Ordered to leave their homes, Crestview Towers residents speak out on evacuation, Remembering the victims of the Surfside condo collapse, How you can help those impacted by the condo collapse in Surfside, Coral Gables resident still refuses to sell decades-old home surrounded by massive development, Broward County pastor faces several fraud, grand theft charges after defrauding church, Gunman dead after hours-long SWAT standoff at SW Miami-Dade apartment complex, Police: Man fatally shot 3-year-old son, himself inside Coconut Grove condo, Police arrest student who made false bomb threat at Dillard High School; classes resume. I have friends in Surfside. "That was a very difficult night . A woman who survived the collapse of a condo building in Florida said she escaped by climbing through the rubble in the dark with her dog. Thanks for contacting us. "Im just grateful I made it out alive with my family," Nir said. Officials confirmed they had recovered remains for each person who had been considered missing after the June 24 collapse. ", Longobardi, who is a civil engineer, said they found a staircase that was completely intact and he quickly checked for cracks or other signs of damage before they used it to escape. You couldn't see anything. Many families are still holding out hope that their loved ones will be found alive. When you start hitting seven days, that really goes down." Survival depends on several factors - mainly access to air and water, ability to regulate body temperature, pre-existing health conditions, injuries sustained during the collapse, and mental will to live. "It felt like the whole building was shaking," Schechter said, adding that she went to look out the window. She quickly grabbed her dog and tried to evacuate, along with other residents, down the only staircase that was available. Firefighters officially ended their search for bodies in the debris of the collapsed Surfside condo building on Friday They were screaming, help, help. Searchers for a second day combed through the massive pile of debris following the collapse of a Florida condo building, as officials vowed to keep looking for anyone who may still . But I am homeless right now. Market data provided by Factset. Their car was destroyed in the building's garage. Anyone with family members from the condominium who are either safe or still missing is urged to call 305-614-1819 to account for them. Victor Oquendo, Emily Shapiro, Ben Stein, Christine Theodorou and Nery Ynclan contributed to this report. The death . When Rosenthal opened his front door, he saw his hallway had been blocked by debris from the collapse. Published The remains belonged to Estelle Hedaya, 54, according to a statement from the Miami-Dade Police. ABC News' Eliana Larramendia Boyd, Kendall Coughlin, Alexandra Faul, Christopher Godburn, Joshua Hoyos, Aaron Katersky, Rachel Katz, Katie Kindelan,. If the cause of death could have been multiple things, and we dont have enough evidence to say definitely what it was, we dont list possible causes.. Your email address will not be published. Yes. Initially, 150 people were thought to be missing. Copyright 2021 NPR. It was about the life that I had there. We climbed out of rubble. As many as nine victims, or about 10% of the death toll, remained alive and buried under the mountains of debris after parts of the 12-story residential building in Surfside, a quiet neighborhood just outside of Miami Beach, caved in on June 24 around 1:25 a.m. Usually it's hard for me to sleep because you have the screaming echoing in my mind and it just brings those flashbacks. The Miami-Dade Police Department is leading an investigation into the incident. Neither he nor the company, in its press release, made any mention of the 98 people who perished. And we went down the stairs. A survivor of the Florida condo collapse said she had to climb through the rubble in the dark with her dog until they found light. "Nothing's ruled out. A "substantial number" of the condominium's residents are from overseas and "almost a third" of those reported missing are foreign citizens, according to Florida Sen. Marco Rubio. The final missing person in the condominium building collapse in Surfside, Florida has been recovered and identified, according to the Miami-Dade County mayor. No one ever, ever, ever told us that this - that that building was in such bad shape - no one, no one. (AP), LIVE UPDATES: SURFSIDE CONDO BUILDING COLLAPSE. Aguero, his wife and two children, were visiting South Florida from New Jersey. I lived there by myself. Fox News Flash top headlines are here. I can't even explain it. Come get us!'" This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. OfeOsin-Cohen, anotherfourth-floor resident who escaped,told NBC's "Today" showshewassound asleepwhen she hearda weird sound and feltthe building shake. I could hear people crying and screaming for help, Lopez told the Herald. I think that it was a progressive evolution, and every hour that went by, we continued to add resources.. The announcement came after search and rescue operations were paused for hours because of growing signs the structure was dangerously unstable. Surfside condo collapse:Town leaders fuming at obstacles to investigation, aim to sue county, From March:Florida judge approves $83 million settlement for property loss in Surfside condo collapse. A jagged five-foot chunk of flooring barely left enough room to escape. Alvarez is still dealing with the trauma. And there was water - a lot of water. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. An engineer apparently warned the building's condo association of major structural damage back in 2018. It's unclear exactly how many residents have been displaced, but those with insurance policies should recoup at least a portion of their losses. Some of the medical examiners reports reviewed by the newspaper showed injuries such as broken legs, possible fractures or small cuts that wouldnt have resulted in immediate death, the report said. In the early morning hours of June 24, Sara, Gabe and Chani were home but all three had a reason to be awake later than usual. I thought, oh, tomorrow on the news, we're going to hear about, you know, tremors in Florida. CNN Sans & 2016 Cable News Network. At that point, I turned around. Nobody had been found alive since immediately after the Florida building crumbled almost two weeks ago, killing at least 54. I left the cat behind, and I ran out. "We said, 'We have to run, don't take anything,'" Longobardi recalled during an interview Friday on "GMA" with ABC News' T.J. Holmes. The teens rescue was one of at least 37 people rescued the day of the collapse. "Of course, it's not ruled out," she added. I see cars going inwards, underneath the building underneath the building is the car garage. One was a penthouse, the other on the first floor. However, NPR has been able to confirm that the meeting did take place in 2018. The uncle of a 15-year-old who survived the Champlain Towers South collapse in Surfside, Florida, two weeks ago called the man who found the teenager in the rubble to thank him. Firefighterseventuallyrescued him from his fourth-floor balcony. As of Friday night, at least four people were confirmed dead and 159 people were unaccounted for as search crews continued to work through the wreckage. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. "I didn't know where to run. Town leaders fuming at obstacles to investigation, aim to sue county, Florida judge approves $83 million settlement for property loss in Surfside condo collapse, DeSantis signs condo reform bill a response to Surfside building collapse into law, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. "We're lucky to be here.". Elected officials told the paper that first responders lacked adequate resources and the experience in dealing with such a massive and catastrophic incident. "The building swayed like a sheet of paper. 00:25. 1401 79th Street Causeway Far more people have not been as fortunate; 32 people have been confirmed dead, and 113 remain unaccounted for as teams urgently search through the rubble for signs of life, officials said Tuesday. And it felt like the longest thunder I had ever heard in my life. Just white, concrete dust," he said. I go as near as I can. "It was like a really loud clap of thunder. "At that point, we knew it was a race against time because I didn't know if the rest of the building was coming [down].". She still hears the screams from that night. And I ran, and I ran. GARCIA-NAVARRO: And have you been back to the building? Alfredo used to joke to his wife she'd have to bury him there. A 2020 study conducted by Shimon Wdowinski, a professor at Florida International University's Institute of Environment in Miami, found signs of land subsidence in from 1993 to 1999 in the area where the Champlain Towers South condominium is located. The group came up against rubble blocking their path. But the kindness of people has been phenomenal. Ron DeSantis has declared a state of emergency in Miami-Dade County "to provide assistance for the families impacted by the Surfside tragedy," according to the order issued Thursday evening. Was any of that shared with the rest of residents? Visit Insider's homepage for more stories. But all the material possessions they lost can be replaced, he said. I don't know why I grabbed my phone. I also want you to know that that couple - that they keep saying in the news that 1001 - it's a man and his wife - that the niece was visiting them - they were the nicest people, the nicest people, were always - I'm by myself. Thats what saved me. Direktor noted that he hadn't been warned of any structural issues with the building or about the land it was built on. Have you been able to sort of gather and sort of think about what's next? 2023 www.tallahassee.com. Rattled, she got dressed, grabbed some essentials andbegan the trek out. "I looked to the left and the apartment to our left was half sheared off. Deven survived the partial collapse of a condo tower near Miami. They were always, always offering assistance. NPR's Lulu Garcia-Navarro speaks with Susana Alvarez, who lived on the 10th floor of the building that collapsed in Surfside, Florida. The identification brings the total death toll to 98 victims. Its so difficult to put into words because of the people that are there, but Im grateful to be alive, he said. Of the 136 condominium units, approximately 55 were destroyed along the northeast corridor, according to Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Assistant Chief Raide Jadallah. Emergency personnel work at the site of a partially collapsed building in Surfside near Miami Beach, Fla., June 24, 2021. There's no building.". The identification brings the total death toll to. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com. GARCIA-NAVARRO: It was an unimaginable situation. She then went down to the garage to discover it was flooded with water upto her ankles. 2021 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.