Prayers are reportedly requested for those affected by the sudden collapse of a residential building in Florida that contains an unknown number of people.
Evangelist Franklin Graham called for prayers for those still trapped inside a 12-story condominium in Surfside, Florida early morning of Thursday.
"In the darkness of the early morning hours today, the unexpected happened in Surfside, Florida. A 12-story condominium building partially collapsed, leaving area residents and visitors shocked and stunned. Officials say that at least one person is dead and they fear many others may be found as emergency crews search through the debris in the coming hours. Pray for the family members of those who lived in the building waiting to hear if their loved ones are safe or not," Graham said in Facebook.
Graham added that the Billy Graham Rapid Response Team's chaplains are already on site assisting with the needs of the first responders and the community. He also encouraged those afflicted by quoting from the Psalms that God is "our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble."
Not The Bee reported that as of Jun 24th, 2021 at 10:06 a.m. one was already confirmed dead while nine have been rushed to the hospital from the collapsed Champlain Towers building as of Thursday morning. Many people are still trapped in the 1981-constructed building that was fully occupied for residential use.
Units are said to be either one or two-bedroom types and it is still unclear how many were actually inside the building when it suddenly collapsed. The only clue there are people still trapped inside are the screams and cries for help reported by bystanders.
According to the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, only one of the twin towers collapsed, particularly the one near 88 street and Collins. There are 80 units of the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue deployed in the area for rescue and recovery, as well as, a family reunification center for "anyone looking for unaccounted or missing relatives."
"Search & rescue efforts are ongoing, with #MDFR crews searching the building and the debris around the structure for any survivors," the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue tweeted Thursday evening.
The Miami-Dade Fire Rescue have asked occupants of the tower to complete a Wellness Check Form as part of their rescue operations and to account the actual number of the building's occupants.
The Miami-Dade Police have currently closed several roads leading to the Champlain Towers and has provided alternate routes for the public to take due to the heavy traffic brought by the rescue operations. The Miami-Dade Police provides regular updates on the rescue operations on their Facebook page.
Meanwhile, a lot of non-profit organizations and local officials have provided support to the first responders such as the World Central Kitchen, founded by Chef Jose Andres, who provided meals to them and the "displaced families."
"We will continue to pray for all affected and support with meals," the World Central Kitchen tweeted on Thursday night.
Fox News, on the other hand, reported that there are dozens of rescuers looking for the 99 unaccounted for from the collapsed building. While 35 have been rescued so far. Witness accounts of the collapsing building said it felt like an earthquake while some said it sounded like a tornado that took place roughly at 1:20 a.m.
An unidentified man told Fox News that, "It was the craziest thing I ever heard in my life."
Court documents indicate that one of the residents of the building that collapsed had filed a lawsuit in 2015 stating that the owners, Champlain Towers South Condominium Association, Inc., did not maintain the building's outer walls properly, Newsweek (via MSN) reported.
The resident reported saw water seeping through cracks in the outer wall in 2014, damaging her outside terrace. She filed a separate lawsuit against the owners back then and won. A year later, she filed for damages stating that the owners "failed to repair or negligently repaired the common elements and the outside walls of the building." It is currently unclear as to whether this information provides insight as to why the building collapsed.
Fox News said Governor Ron De Santis along with Senators Marco Rubio and Rick Scott have offered support to local officials for their search-and-rescue operation needs.
