4 Baltimore County Tactical Rescue Specialists To Assist With Efforts At Surfside Condo Collapse
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. (WJZ) -- The Baltimore County Fire Department said four tactical rescue specialists from the department are on their way to assist with search and rescue efforts in Surfside, Florida, where a condo collapse left at least 18 people dead and more than 100 people missing.
The specialists are members of PA Task Force 1, a federal urban search and rescue team from Philadelphia that is sponsored by the Philadelphia Fire Department. The team left from Philly Wednesday night.
CBS Miami reported Thursday that the search and rescue operation was halted for safety concerns overnight.
"We were forced to halt operations on the collapse in the early hours of the morning due to structural concerns about the standing structure. We are doing everything that we can to ensure that the safety of our first responders is paramount and to continue our search and rescue operation," said Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava.
Search and rescue resumed after about 15 hours.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said there are almost 500 first responders on the scene and almost 1,400 tons of building material has been removed from the site.
