SURFSIDE, Fla. — With a tropical storm headed toward South Florida, the upright portion of the doomed Champlain Towers South building will be demolished within days to allow rescue crews to eventually resume searching the site safely, officials said.
“This will protect our search and rescue teams. We don’t know when it could fall over,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said during a press conference on Saturday. “With these gusts, that would create a real severe hazard.”
Miami-Dade’s mayor initially announced the building could not be demolished until at least late July. But after speaking to another demolition company, officials decided to move up the timetable. Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett said the remaining structure could be demolished as early as Sunday.
“The fear was that the hurricane may take the building down for us — and take it down in the wrong direction, on top of the pile where we have victims,” Burkett said.
The demolition company was identified as CDI Controlled Demolition Inc., of Phoenix, Maryland.
The announcement Saturday morning came more than a week after the Champlain Towers South building collapsed in the middle of the night, killing at least 24 people and leaving over 120 still missing. Since the June 24 collapse, rescue crews from across the nation and world have been struggling to find survivors and bodies in the concrete and metal remains of the 12-story building.
Two more bodies were discovered overnight, Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava announced Saturday morning.
The rescue efforts have been complicated by stormy weather and unstable conditions at the site — including shifting rubble, the threat of falling debris and fear that the remaining standing portion of the tower could topple, putting crews at risk. Levine Cava on Friday signed an order for the demolition of the building.
On Friday, the mayor said the demolition probably wouldn’t happen until late July, as staffers iron out plans to topple the building safely. “We’d prefer it fall in a controlled manner. But we may not have that opportunity,” Levine Cava said. “I understand getting it done in that period of time would be unprecedentedly fast.”
But that changed Saturday morning, with Tropical Storm Elsa churning toward South Florida. The mayor announced a state of emergency, as did the governor for counties that could be affected by the storm.
As of 11 a.m. Saturday, Elsa’s projected track remained west of Miami-Dade County, passing over Cuba, Key West and into the Gulf of Mexico. But officials warned that the county would will feel experience stormy weather, and a slight shift in the track remains possible.
“As early as Monday afternoon, we can start to see more frequent rain bands and gusty winds and that will continue through Tuesday,” said Miami National Weather Service expert Robert Molleda.
Miami-Dade Fire Chief of Operations Ray Jadallah told family members, in a private briefing Saturday morning, that crews need up to 14 hours to prepare the building for demolition. They plan to drill holes into the columns of the first and second floors and plant detonators there.
Ideally, the building will collapse in place, with debris some falling onto Collins Avenue, he said.
County Fire Chief Alan Cominsky said a tarp will be placed over the collapsed portion of the building on the east side of the site, where rescuers have been scouring for bodies and survivors. He said the site will remain a “rescue” effort.
“There are areas that we haven’t been able to search,” Cominsky said.
The county also went to court late Friday, to try and get the condo board’s receiver to sign off on the demolition. A judge overseeing lawsuits filed by victims said it wasn’t necessary, paving the way for the demolition.
Rescuers are also cognizant of pets that may have remained in the building, Levine Cava said Saturday. She said crews have done three separate searches of the building — including with cameras — and have found no pets.
But crews have been unable to go inside units. “It’s not safe for anyone to go beyond the first floor,” Levine Cava said.
Earlier this week, Miami firefighters used a cherry picker to leave food and water for a cat named Coco believed to have been left behind on the unstable fourth floor of the upright condo building.
The challenges facing first responders have been daunting. Thunderstorms have destabilized the two-story pile of crushed concrete and steel, while cracks and shifting debris have threatened to topple the remaining portion of the tower that remains upright. Elsa is also headed in the direction of South Florida, although it remains too early to tell how much it may impact Surfside.
There have been other challenges. Late Friday, official announced that six firefighters had tested positive for COVID-19. Earlier in the day, the body of the 7-year-old daughter of a Miami firefighter was pulled from the rubble, adding another emotional punch to what has been a frustrating and exhausting rescue operation.
———
