HEARTBREAK

Surfside Collapse Death Toll Climbs to 16, Police Chief’s Mom Among the Victims

President Biden is expected to visit the collapse site as additional victims were recovered from the site overnight.

The death toll from the Surfside condo collapse has risen to 16 after additional victims were recovered from the rubble overnight, city officials confirmed Wednesday. Hilda Noriega, 92, mother of North Bay Village Police Chief Carlos Noriega, was the latest victim to be identified, according to a statement from her family. She is the oldest victim to be recovered from the site as of Wednesday morning. Relatives of the victims discovered overnight have not yet been identified. Officials fear that debris falling from the part of the building that did not collapse may pose a safety risk as damaged cars were pulled away from the collapse site overnight. “We are taking necessary measures to avoid those sort of falling items,” said Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava at a press briefing. President Joe Biden is expected to visit the site Thursday.