- The remaining part of the Champlain South Tower will be demolished before the arrival of Tropical Storm Elsa.
- The demolition has caused people to worry about the pets left behind after the residents evacuated.
- A Miami official said he heard that cats, parrots and a dog may still be in the building.
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Miami-Dade officials said on Saturday that rescuers have repeatedly combed through the remains of Champlain Tanan, looking for missing pets of survivors who fled the building.
The building will be demolished before coming Tropical Storm Elsa, But residents who evacuated after the building collapsed expressed concern about the pets they left behind.
Daniella Levine Cava, Mayor of Miami-Dade County Press conference The search and rescue team conducted a first-, second-, and third-level searches of the animals, but found nothing.
She said that they also used the camera to scan, but still did not find.
“I understand very well that pets are part of people’s families-I have always been a pet owner myself, and my heart is with those who are afraid of animals,” Kava said. “And I just want you to know that extra efforts have been made and are being made.”
Kava said that she has been working with the contractor, and she provided the contractor with a list of locations where animals may be present in the building. She said the contractor is “doing all he can, just to conduct additional searches.”
But she added that the final search will not be carried out at the scene because it is too dangerous to enter the building and cross the first floor.
A Miami official, Ken Russell, Tell the Associated Press He has heard of pets that may be left in the building, including a dog in a crate on the ninth floor, a cat named Coco on the fourth floor, and two parrots and a cat on the tenth floor.
He said that when he first heard about a cat being abandoned, he notified the fire chief and made sure that no resources would be used to rescue any survivors trapped under the rubble.
He said that a firefighter even hung up on a bucket truck and started calling for Cocoa.
“People rely on them for mental stability and comfort,” he said. “Knowing that they left animals behind is a huge guilt.”
The Associated Press reported that on Saturday, someone saw a cat wandering on the lower floor, and the staff planned to place a trap on the balcony to rescue it. It is not clear whether the cat belongs to any residents of the building.
