SURFSIDE, Fla. – Five days after the Champlain Towers collapsed, the search for survivors has become the largest of its kind in Florida history.
At least 370 rescuers from across the state, including Jacksonville, are picking through the rubble at the site of the condominium collapse in the town of Surfside.
In the last update, officials said the death toll has risen to 10 people, but 151 people are still missing.
HOW TO HELP: Here’s a list of resources to support those impacted by the Surfside building collapse
There are about 80 firefighters from Jacksonville, part of the Urban Search and Rescue team, helping with recovery efforts as teams from across the world are now looking for survivors. Mexican and Israeli search crews also joined in at the request of families of the missing.
Aerial shots show cranes, bulldozers and other heavy machinery.
“I observed heavy equipment in action lifting up huge slabs and moving them away from the pile,” said Surfside mayor Charles Burkett.
Families are desperate for answers more than 100 hours after the 12-story oceanfront condo collapsed. Leaders said they are not giving up hope there could be survivors. Teams tunneling underground are using cameras which have found gaps in the debris. It’s a reason for them to believe someone could still be living in a similar space.
“I repeat: the search and rescue operation continues,” said Miami-Dade County mayor Daniella Levine Cava.
The families of the missing got an up-close perspective of the mission, escorted to the front lines by bus.
We do not have definitive answers, we give them [family members] the facts, we take them to the site, we show them the operation, we show them where the pancake is, we show them where the tunnel is, we show them where the dogs are,” Cava added.
Over the weekend, dozens of firefighters from Jacksonville, St. Johns County, Clay County and Gainesville joined the search. Two rescuers told News4Jax they were “on the pile,” referring to the pancaked layers of concrete and rebar.
“This is the largest ever deployment of task force resources in the history of Florida that is not a hurricane,” said state fire marshal and CFO Jimmy Patronis. “The same number of men and women that are on the ground right now are the same that were deployed to Hurricane Michael which was a 12 county storm event. They’re working around the clock. They’re working 12 hours at a time. Midnight to noon, noon to midnight. They come from Tallahassee, they come from Orlando, they come from Tampa, they come from Israel, they come from Mexico, they come from Jacksonville, they come from Ft. Myers. They leave their families to come work around the clock. The reward is the life they save.”
Some have deployed to other disasters, like the Bahamas after Hurricane Dorian, the panhandle after Michael and New York City after 9/11.
“We do obviously have to identify why this happened,” said Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
He revealed that a federal team formed after the Sept. 11 attacks is on the ground investigating. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) will look at what led up to the collapse so something like this doesn’t happen again.
“It’s very difficult to know that your loved one could still be alive and have the hope to believe that,” said Miami-Dade Commissioner Jose Diaz. “And at the same time just sit there and wait for that information to get to you. That has to be one of the most difficult things anyone can endure.”
Mental health is a big concern.
The state continues to provide counselors for families and first responders. Religious organizations are also offering relief. Donations of millions of dollars have come in to support the families and the displaced, DeSantis said.