Rescue crews made way for demolition teams at the site of a collapsed South Florida condo building as officials shifted their focus to bringing down the unstable remainder of the structure ahead of a tropical storm.
The search and rescue mission was suspended Saturday afternoon so workers could begin the precarious business of boring holes to hold explosives in the concrete of the still-standing portion of the Champlain Towers South tower in Surfside, Miami-Dade Assistant Fire Chief Raide Jadallah told relatives awaiting word on missing loved ones.
Jadallah said the suspension was a necessary safety measure because the drilling could cause the structure to fail. If that were to happen, he said, “It’s just going to collapse without warning.”