“Just based on the facts, there’s zero chance of survival,” The Times quoted Ray Jadallah, the assistant chief of Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, as telling the families of the missing in a private briefing.Champlain Tower South in the town of Surfside, Florida, collapsed in the early morning on June 24.
As of Thursday, the death toll stood at 64. Chabad-Lubavitch has estimated that about 40 of the dead and missing are Jewish.A total of 76 people remain missing and feared dead in the mountain of rubble, Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava told a news conference, one day after local officials said no hope remained of finding survivors.
The number of missing could change as it remains possible that not all were in the building when it abruptly caved in and crumbled to the ground early on June 24.
Although local officials said that as of midnight EDT (0400 GMT) on Thursday the search and rescue part of the operation was considered over, the digging would continue until they had accounted for everyone believed to have been inside that morning.
"It was moving today to hear from a representative of the Miami Dade Fire Department, who said that they will not stop until they've gotten to the bottom of the pile and recovered every victim," Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett told an afternoon news conference.
"Yesterday was tough," Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said earlier in the day, referring to the shift to recovery mode. "But the work is going to go on and they are going to identify every single person."
The pace at which crews were finding the dead has accelerated since teams demolished a still-standing section of the building over the weekend, allowing greater access inside the ruins and more use of heavy equipment.
Investigators have not determined what caused the Champlain Towers South to fall apart without warning. Attention has been focused on a 2018 engineering report that warned of structural deficiencies.
Burkett said investigators were comparing samples from the debris of the Champlain Towers South with its sister building Champlain Towers North, which was built at the same time and by the same developers, to look for evidence of structural weakness.
"We're just gearing up," he said. "It might be in the next three or four weeks and we'll have more information."
The disaster prompted officials across South Florida to study similar buildings for signs of structural compromise or damage.
Residents of a North Miami Beach condominium, Crestview Towers, were told to leave after engineers found serious concrete and electrical problems. They have not been allowed to return as city officials try to determine if the building can be stabilized.
The Jewish Telegraphic Agency has compiled accounts of the lives of the missing and the dead.
A likely dilemma will be how to account for and mourn the Jewish dead who may never be recovered — a problem that arose in the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001.