Authorities confirm death toll stands at 90

SURFSIDE, Florida – Search efforts entered an eighteenth day on Sunday as rescuers continue to search for victims of the Surfside building collapse.

At the daily press conference on Sunday morning, Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava confirmed that the death toll has risen to 90, with 31 others potentially remaining unaccounted for.

“Our hearts and minds are always with those we have lost and the families who are grieving, and those who are still waiting,” said Levine Cava.

The mayor said rescue teams have removed more than 14 million pounds of debris and rubble from the collapse site.

Watch Sunday’s daily press conference:

Late Sunday morning, Miami-Dade police released the identities of ten victims who had been removed from the rubble during the week.

The body of Richard Augustine, 77, was found on Tuesday, while Luis Sadovnic, 28, and children Alexa Maria Pettengill Lopez Moreira, 9, and Anna Sophia Pettengill Lopez Moreira, 6, were found on Wednesday.

A d

On Thursday, Maria Gabriela Camou Font, 64, picked up Lorenzo De Olivera Leone, 5, Alfredo Leone, 48, Maria Torre, 76, and Edgar Gonzalez, 42. Julio Cesar Velasquez, 66, was recovered on Friday.

A ceremony was held on Saturday evening to honor the Israeli Urban Search and Rescue Task Force, which left the site after two weeks of incredible and tireless work.

Rescuers operated in dangerous conditions on the site. Three workers required medical attention on Friday and one suffered a heart attack and required hospitalization.

Another concern was the quality of the air. Samples taken from the site have shown that the air is dangerous, especially above and around what remains of the collapsed structure.

A d

“Hazardous materials technicians continuously sample and monitor air quality, and all first responders on the job and in the surrounding area wear appropriate protective equipment, including masks,” Levine Cava said on Saturday.

It was earlier in the week on Wednesday when authorities made the difficult decision to switch from search and rescue efforts to search and recovery.

In the days following the collapse, authorities quickly began searching for other buildings in South Florida that may have similar issues, including a condo in North Miami Beach and, on Friday, the Courthouse of the Miami-Dade County located downtown.

Engineers and officials also examined the Champlain North Towers, which were built by the same developer of the collapsed South Towers and around the same time in 1981, with similar materials and design.

A d