Death toll at 22 as mayor signs demo order, Surfside search crews eye Hurricane Elsa
Douglas Hanks, Martin Vassolo, Daniel Chang, and Charles Rabin, The Miami Herald
Jul. 2—Four more victims of the Surfside condo collapse were recovered overnight and into the day Friday, said Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, raising the death toll to 22 as rescue workers continued the search amid the threats of shifting rubble underfoot, falling debris overhead and a hurricane in the forecast.
The mayor also said during a late afternoon briefing that she signed off on the demolition of the standing remains of the Champlain Towers South building. Engineers are considering a pair of options. One would be a controlled blow that would halt the rescue effort for only a few hours. Another would take more time and involves using large cranes to haul away chunks of the building.