At least one person has died and several others have been injured in a building collapse in Miami, Florida.
After a Miami residential building collapses, a boy is miraculously rescued from beneath the rubble.
At least one person has died, several others have been injured, and a massive search and rescue operation is still underway for survivors believed trapped inside a partially collapsed multi-story residential building in Miami on Thursday.
According to Surfside Mayor Charles W Burkett, at least one person has died as a result of the collapse in Surfside, Florida — a person who was pronounced dead at the hospital. According to CBS Miami, the victim was a woman, and a boy around the age of ten was rescued alive from beneath the rubble.
“This is a heinous tragedy. Buildings simply do not fall down in the United States,” Mr Burkett told CNN.
“My prayers are with all those impacted by this horrific tragedy and their families,” Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava tweeted. We are extremely appreciative of @MiamiDadeFire, @MiamiBeachFire, and all first responders on the scene – may they remain safe while saving lives.”
Kimberly Morales, a resident of the adjacent building, told CNN that she had asked “everyone to hurry up and exit the building.”
Miami-Dade Fire and Rescue had previously stated that it had dispatched over 80 units to the scene with assistance from municipal fire departments.
It stated that a media staging area has been established in a field near 86 Street and Collins Avenue.
“Miami-Dade Fire Rescue is on scene and conducting rescues as we speak,” Surfside Police Sgt Marian Cruz was quoted as saying by NBC Miami. “Because this is a very active scene, I advise everyone to simply avoid the area so that fire rescue and officers can conduct rescues and do what we need to do,” Sgt Cruz said.
According to NBC Miami, residents were reportedly relocated to the Surfside Community Centre and streets in the area were closed.
Visuals from the scene showed an entire side of the building collapsing into a massive pile of debris, and police cars and fire trucks gathered in the street below, their lights flashing.
“The entire structure shook violently, as if struck by an earthquake. I opened my sliding glass door and noticed a plume of dust, and then I opened the door and noticed the building had pancaked in the back,” a woman who lives on the ninth floor told Local10 News.
Additionally, the Miami Beach Police Department, along with the Miami Beach Fire Department and Ocean Rescue, tweeted that they are assisting the town of Surfside with rescue operations. There is currently no confirmation of the number of people trapped inside the building.
Joel Franco, a Miami-based journalist who was on the scene, tweeted that urban search and rescue vehicles were en route to look for survivors.
“Several of these people were just rescued from the partially collapsed Surfside condo building,” he tweeted.
According to Mail Online, the building is an eleven-story apartment complex called Champlain Towers South, and the cause of the collapse is unknown at this time.
“It appears as though a portion of the area near the partial collapse has lost power,” Mr Franco said. Katie Daviscourt, a journalist for The Post Millennial, shared a video from the collapse site with the caption “Miami/Dade Fire and Rescue Searching for Bodies.” This is heinous.”
