Rescue efforts resume in Surfside condo collapse

July 1, 2021 carleyshaffer1 US 0

US President Joe Biden speaks alongside Miami Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava (R) and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (L) about the collapse of the 12-story Champlain Towers South condo building in Surfside, during a briefing in Miami Beach, Florida, July 1, 2021. - President Joe Biden flew to Florida on Thursday to "comfort" families of people killed or still missing in the rubble of a beachfront apartment building, where hopes of finding survivors had all but evaporated. Biden and First Lady Jill Biden left the White House early for the flight to Miami, and then traveled by motorcade to nearby Surfside, where the death toll in the tragedy now stands at 18, and more than 140 still unaccounted for. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

Joe Biden speaks alongside Miami Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava (R) and Fla. Gov. Ron DeSantis (L) about the collapse of the 12-story Champlain Towers South condo building in Surfside, during a briefing in Miami Beach, Florida, July 1, 2021. (SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 7:02 PM PT – Thursday, July 1, 2021

Search and rescue operations at the site of the Surfside building collapse in Florida have resumed. Teams resumed their search on Thursday after being halted for nearly 15 hours due to safety concerns.

Officials said the death toll currently stands at 18 people and 145 others remain unaccounted for. Miami-Dade fire rescue said finding loved ones continues to be at the forefront of operations.

“I have to tell you that our firefighters looked really, really excited to get back out there,” said Mayor Daniella Devine Cava (D). “They had taken the time to study the conditions, to make sure things were safe. Our fire rescue team has been working around the clock…and we needed our engineers on site to evaluate the safety of the standing structure.”

.@FLCaseyDeSantis and I thank the volunteers, first responders, law enforcement, and search teams for your unwavering dedication to supporting Surfside. The Surfside community knows that you are doing all you can during the search & rescue mission following this horrible tragedy. pic.twitter.com/LcOqJeTgDV

— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) July 2, 2021

In the meantime, officials are moving forward with plans to safely demolish the section of the building that remains standing, which could take weeks.

While talking to reporters on Thursday, Joe Biden baselessly claimed that so-called global warming caused sea levels to rise, which in turn caused the building to collapse. Biden also appeared to blame Florida’s booming economy and loose regulations for the incident.

Florida officials said the 40-year-old building was up for safety recertification this year. However so far, they have not found evidence to support any of Biden’s claims as the investigation continues.