12-story building collapses,1 dead and many injured
The north of Miami Beach was hit by a crisis after a 12-story residential building collapsed partially in the middle of the night on Thursday. The building collapsed somewhere around 1:30 am. An entire side of the building was brought down to dust according to images shared online.
A massive search-and-rescue operation has been underway since. Police in Miami-Dade County have confirmed the death of at least one person, and the lives of many others are feared to be in peril.
55 apartment units are said to have been destroyed by the collapse among 136 other units in Champlain Towers South complex, a 40-year-old building.
Rescuers have evacuated 35 people caught in the building by pulling them out of the building structure. But, there is still no knowledge about how many have gone missing.
The cause behind the collapse of the building is yet to be known, said the investigators who have been investigating alongside engineers and emergency responders.
Miami-Dade Police Department is serving as the lead investigatory agency for the collapse. Miami-Dade Fire Rescue is handling the site’s emergency management. A family reunification center has been set up by them about half a mile from the building.