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A28 u.s. news
Dialuna 28 Juni 2021

Families frustrated at slow pace of condo rescue

chief of the Miami-Dade Fire they have to remove them in my family member, I would
Rescue Department, said a way that nothing will fall want everyone in there pull-
they are holding out hope of onto the pile. ing rubble away as fast as hu-
finding someone alive, but manly possible,” Tilton said.
they must be slow and me- “We are doing layer by layer,” “But moving the wrong piece
thodical. Castro said. “It doesn’t stop. of debris at the wrong time
It’s all day. All night.” could cause it to fall on them
“The debris field is scattered A fire in the rubble pile and crush them.”
throughout, and it’s compact, slowed efforts earlier in the During past urban rescues,
extremely compact,” he said. weekend, but Miami-Dade rescuers have found survi-
Debris must be stabilized and Mayor Daniella Levine Cava vors as long as a week past
shored up as they go. said it was suppressed Satur- the initial catastrophe, Tilton
day. said.
“If there is a void space, we
want to make sure we’re giv- She said six to eight teams Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis
(AP) — Rescuers digging were in there.” en every possibility of a survi- are actively searching the pile praised the search teams as
through the rubble of a More than 150 people re- vor. That’s why we can’t just at any given time, with hun- being “some of the best in the
Florida beachfront condo main unaccounted for in go in and move things errati- dreds of team members on business.”
sought to reassure fami- Surfside, and authorities and cally, because that’s going to standby ready to rotate in. “I’d hope that none of these
lies that they were doing loved ones fear the toll will have the worst outcome pos- She said teams have worked things would ever happen
as much as possible to find go much higher. sible,” he said. around the clock since anywhere, but if something
missing loved ones, but Thursday, and there was no like this happens, the people
the crews said they needed Scores of rescue workers re- So far, he said, they have not lack of personnel. you would want are Miami-
to work carefully for the mained on the massive pile come across any voids. Dade search and rescue,”
best chance of uncovering of rubble, searching for sur- Teams are also working with DeSantis said during a Sun-
survivors. vivors but so far only finding In meetings with authori- engineers and sonar to make day news conference. “These
bodies and human remains. ties, family members repeat- sure the rescuers are safe. teams have gone all over the
As the death toll rose Sunday edly pushed rescuers to do “We need to be sure that the world. These are the people
to nine, relatives were grow- In a meeting with families more. One asked why they pile does not fall on them. It that you want. And they’ve
ing increasingly desperate on Saturday evening, people could not surgically remove does not fall on any possible been there within minutes,
for news and worried about moaned and wept as Miami the largest pieces of cement survivors and we are diligent- and it’s been nonstop.”
the slow progress and dwin- Dade Assistant Fire Chief with cranes, to try to uncover ly pursuing that as we do our
dling hopes. No one has been Raide Jadallah explained why bigger voids where survivors work,” she said. Authorities also sought to as-
pulled alive from the pile he could not answer their re- might be found. sure family members directly
since hours after the collapse peated questions about how Crews spent the night dig- that the rescuers were well
on Thursday morning. Some many victims they had found. ging a trench that stretches qualified, telling them dur-
family members were taken “There’s not giant pieces that 125 feet, 20 feet across and ing a Saturday meeting that
by bus Sunday to a location “It’s not necessarily that we’re we can easily surgically re- 40 feet deep, which, she said, some rescuers had worked
near the site after relatives finding victims, OK? We’re move,” replied Maggie Cas- allowed them to find more on search-and-rescue op-
frustrated with the pace of finding human remains,” tro, of the fire rescue agency, bodies and human remains. erations after the Oklahoma
rescue efforts demanded to Jadallah said, according to the who described herself as “one City bombing, at the World
visit the scene. video posted on Instagram. of the people out there at- Earl Tilton, who runs a Trade Center after the 9/11
tempting to find your family search-and-rescue consult- attacks and following the
“My daughter is 26 years old, Every time crews find re- members.” ing firm in North Carolina, Haiti earthquake.
in perfect health. She could mains, they clean the area and said the rescuers in Miami-
make it out of there,” one remove the remains. They “They’re not big pieces. Piec- Dade County were doing an
mother told rescuers during a work with a rabbi to ensure es are crumbled, and they’re “outstanding job.” Rushing After remains are found, they
weekend meeting with fam- any religious rituals are done being held together by the into the rubble without care- are sent to the medical exam-
ily members. A video of the properly, Jadallah said. rebar that’s part of the con- ful planning and execution iner. Authorities are gather-
meeting was posted by Insta- “So the question is, is why struction. So if we try to lift would injure or kill rescuers ing DNA samples from fam-
gram user Abigail Pereira. is things taking so long?” he that piece, even as carefully, and the people they are try- ily members to aid in identi-
said, “What we’re doing is those pieces that are crum- ing to save, said Tilton, who fication. Late Saturday, four
“It’s not enough,” continued making sure that everything bling can fall off the sides and runs Lodestar Professional of the victims were identi-
the mother, who was among is followed to a ‘T.’” disturb the pile,” Castro said. Services in Hendersonville, fied as Stacie Dawn Fang, 54;
relatives who pushed au- North Carolina. Antonio Lozano, 83; Gladys
thorities to bring in experts Authorities said their efforts She said they try to cut re- Lozano, 79; and Manuel La-
from other countries to help. are still a search-and-rescue bar in strategic places and “I understand the families’ Font, 54.
“Imagine if your children operation. Alan Cominsky, remove large pieces, but that concerns on this. If it was

Minnesota lawmakers reach deal on policing measures

(AP) — Minnesota’s top Demo- the most contentious piece of budget provisions regulating the use of no- and killed Daunte Wright for driving
cratic and Republican lawmak- negotiations among a divided Legis- knock warrants, a police misconduct with expired tabs. That proposal is
ers reached agreement on the lature that’s up against a Wednesday database to create an early warning not part of the agreement.
highlights of a public safety bill deadline to avoid a government shut- system to keep bad officers off the
that includes police accountabil- down. streets, and the creation of an office Republicans who control the Sen-
ity measures, a day after former of missing and murdered indigenous ate resisted many of the Democrats’
Minneapolis police officer Derek The Democratic-controlled state relatives as well as a task force for proposals, calling some “anti-police.”
Chauvin was sentenced to 22 1/2 House included several policing missing and murdered Black women. The GOP negotiations at times fo-
years in prison for the death of provisions in its overall public safety cused those pushing to abolish the
George Floyd. budget bill this session in the hopes of Democrats had advocated for limits police, as well as violent protests fol-
building on a package the Legislature on pretextual traffic stops, where po- lowing Floyd’s killing. The agree-
While some details had yet to be fi- approved last summer in the after- lice pull over a driver for a minor vio- ment includes $2 million for violent
nalized, leaders from both parties math Floyd’s death under Chauvin’s lation, such as expired tabs or some- crime enforcement teams, a Republi-
said the compromise reached late knee. thing hanging from the rearview mir- can-backed provision.
Saturday settles the major issues after ror. That push intensified after police
months of negotiations. It has been The 223-page bill draft includes in suburban Brooklyn Center shot