Search-and-rescue operations have been suspended as engineers prepare to demolish the remains of the Champlain Towers South partially collapsed building ahead of Tropical Storm Elsa.
The Miami Herald is reporting that Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Assistant Chief Ray Jadallah, during a briefing Saturday morning, told family members of the victims of the collapsed condo the remaining structure will likely be demolished late Sunday night.
During the 9:30 a.m. briefing, Jadallah said demolition professionals were about 80 percent finished drilling small holes into the foundation of the building. Once the drilling of those holes is complete, small explosive charges will be placed in them.
The exact time of the demolition won’t be determined until after a meeting with other officials at 1:30 p.m. Sunday. “We’re looking at some time late tonight,” Jadallah said.
The death toll from the fallen building rose to 24 as of Saturday, and 121 people are still missing. No one has been rescued since the first few hours after Champlain Towers South partially collapsed on June 24.
Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett also wants to see a controlled demolition. “The fear was that the hurricane might 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, referring to Elsa which was downgraded to a tropical storm Saturday.
On Sunday, according to CNN, the National Hurricane Center issued a tropical storm warning for the Florida Keys, from Craig Key west to Dry Tortugas. Meanwhile, a tropical storm watch has been issued from Craig Key east to Ocean Reef, and for the southwest coast of Florida, from Flamingo north to Bonita Beach.
