On June 23, at approximately 1:25 a.m., a condo complex in Florida collapsed, becoming one of the deadliest building collapses in US history. 

After nearly a month of searching for bodies since the collapse, the Miami-Dade Fire Department has officially called an end to the search and rescue efforts on Friday, July 23.

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue's urban search-and-rescue team left the site and headed back to headquarters for a news conference stating that the search was over.

In a ceremony, Fire Chief Alan Cominsky thanked and saluted the firefighters who worked 12-hour shifts to uncover bodies at the site. "It's obviously devastating. It's obviously a difficult situation across the board," Cominsky said. "I couldn't be prouder of the men and women that represent Miami-Dade Fire Rescue.”

At least 97 people have been confirmed dead, with 96 being recovered from the site and one dying at the hospital after recovery.

One person, Estelle Hedaya, 54, is thought to be still unaccounted for in the rubble. However, officials say that there are no more bodies to be found at the site of the collapse.

Records released by the town of Surfside have revealed a 2018 report showing that there was “major structural damage” at the Champlain Towers South condo building. 

The report, done by the firm Morabito Consultants, detailed cracking of concrete columns and beams and walls in the parking garage. It also noted that there was major damage to a concrete slab where the ground-floor pool deck sat that needed to be repaired.

However, a structural engineer who reviewed the report concluded that the flaws should not have caused the building to suddenly collapse as it did. “These things are very unlikely to cause the building to collapse,” said Sinisa Kolar, a senior structural engineer at The Falcon Group. “Can they cause a balcony or piece or chunk of balcony to fall down? Yes. But the whole building as a result of these things? No.”

Upon the request of State Attorney Katherine Fernández Rundle, Miami’s grand jury agreed to look into the issue of building safety after the collapse.

In a statement on Wednesday, July 7, Fernández Rundle stated that the grand jury will issue “recommendations to prevent such a disaster from occurring again, not just in Surfside, and not just in condominiums, but in all buildings and structures in the coastal, intercoastal and surrounding areas of our county, state and nation.”

By Alexandria Kim