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Structure fears halt Miami rescue effort

Document Cited in Related
Vincent
Published date02 July 2021
Date02 July 2021
Publication titleEvening Gazette
Search crews that have been on top of the pile of rubble for the last week stopped work shortly after 2am local time, Miami-Dade county mayor Daniella Levine Cava told a news conference.

The stoppage came on the same day that crews and relatives of those still missing were scheduled to meet President Joe Biden in a visit that many hoped would provide some measure of comfort to a devastated community.

Mr Biden and First Lady Jill Biden planned to thank first responders and search and rescue teams. They also planned to meet the families of victims, White House press secretary

Jen Psaki said.

The president's visit comes a week after Champlain Towers South, a 12-storey beachfront building in Surfside, suddenly came crashing down.

Searchers going through the ruins found the remains of six people on Wednesday, bringing the number of confirmed dead to 18. The number of residents unaccounted for stands at 145.

Miami-Dade police director Freddy Ramirez said he hopes Mr Biden's visit will be a morale booster for the entire community.

"We've had several challenges from weather, sorrow, pain. And I think that the president coming will bring some unity here for our community, support, like our governor, our mayor, all of us together," he said.

During a meeting with families on Wednesday, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue assistant chief Raide Jadallah said officials are concerned about the stability of part of the building.

"What we know is that the columns on the east side of the building are kind of, of concern, not compromised, but just right now of concern," Mr Jadallah said. "Hypothetically, worst-case scenario: if these columns...

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