The Surfside Condo building.Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty
Multiple residents of the Champlain Towers South condo reportedly called 911 in the early hours of June 24, and described the terrifying scene that was unfolding in Florida, according toThe Miami HeraldandCBS News.
“It seemed like here it was an earthquake,” said one caller at 1:17 am, according to the outlet. “The garage, everything — seemed like something underground — everything exploded down.”
“If there was an explosion — and I don’t know what could have caused it — but that could have caused that slab to fall,” Lehman explained, noting that gas lines or fuel tanks could have ignited to cause the “explosion” and the building slab falling may have been responsible for the “earthquake.”
“That could have started the progression [of the building collapse] as we know it,” she said.
The aftermath of the Surfside Condo collapse.CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty
Later in the early morning, multiple residents in the building called 911 and could be heard reporting the terrifying collapse and damage that occurred.
“Oh my God! The whole building collapsed!” one person said in a call, according to CBS News.
“People are yelling, saying they’re stuck, on the part of the building that collapsed,” another caller said, perWFOR. “They’re yelling. There’s people in the rubble yelling, just so you know.”
“We’ve gotta get out. Hurry up, hurry up. There’s a big explosion,” added someone else in a separate call. “There’s a lot of smoke. I can’t see anything. We gotta go. I can’t see nothing but smoke.”
One woman who called 911 reported that she saw the swimming pool beginning to sink in, predicting that the incident would claim the lives of many.
The aftermath of the collapse of the condo building in Surfside, Florida.Miami-Dade Fire Rescue/Twitter
“I woke up because I was hearing some noise. I couldn’t understand what was happening. I looked outside and I saw the patio area sinking down. The pool area started sinking down,” she said, per CBS News. “There are many parts of the building that went down. The building just went into a sinkhole. There will be many, many people dead.”
Another woman who called told the 911 operator she was stuck near the parking garage and needed help.
“Can somebody help me get out, please?” she pleaded on the phone, according to the outlet. “If the building comes down, it will come down on my head.”
Since the tragic collapse, officials in Florida had been working around the clock to sift through the rubble. Though it was initially a search and rescue mission,officials turned it into a recovery effort on July 7, following thedemolition of the standing portion of the building.
RELATED VIDEO: Community Rallies Around Mom, Teen Daughter Pulled from Rubble in Fla. Condo Collapse: ‘Miracles’
So far, 97 people have been confirmed dead, with 90 people identified and 88 families notified,according to Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava.
Though the cause of the collapse remains unclear, Surfside Vice Mayor Tina Paul previously toldThe Washington Postthat the building had passed inspection just a day earlier.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has said that engineers will investigate the cause of the collapse, but that answers might take time. “You’re not gonna have those answers immediately, but I know that they are going to be working diligently to do that,” he said following the building’s collapse.
source: people.com
