Theresa Velasquez identified as the voice heard in the rubble of the Surfside
An 11-page memo released publicly by the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Department last week said the “voice in the rubble” belonged to Theresa Velasquez, a Live Nation music executive who was 36 when she perished, along with her parents.
They were among the 98 people killed in the disaster at the Champlain Towers South building last summer.
The memo, which described precarious search conditions and the emotional toll of the quest for “life under the rubble,” said rescue dogs “picked up a live victim scent” underneath the condo’s parking garage about 6:30 a.m.
“We are currently reviewing the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue report,” Lark-Marie Anton, a spokeswoman for Gannett, which owns USA Today, said in a statement. “The facts and the sourcing in our story are clear. We have no additional comment at this time.”
Four survivors rescued, one later died
Jadallah’s memo offers new details into the agonizing hours and days in which relatives, rescue crews and city officials held out hope of finding survivors in the heap of mangled air conditioners, razor-sharp metal bars and shattered concrete walls and balconies.
The memo described high carbon monoxide levels at the site and the perils of using electrical power tools in pools of water.
“While working in standing water, rescue crews were electrically shocked as they operated the jackhammers due to the moisture in the electrical lines,” Jadallah wrote.
For the first five hours, the memo said, rescuers removed survivors trapped in balconies, staircases and the parking garage. Ultimately a total of 37 survivors were rescued.
Airbag lifts, hydraulic tools, pneumatic shoring devices and other instruments were used to rescue four survivors trapped under the rubble, according to the memo.
The boy’s mother also was rescued but later died from her injuries.
A woman and her teenage daughter — who lived on the ninth floor of the tower — were also rescued from the rubble, Benitez said. The daughter was found first and pointed rescuers to a spot about 30 feet away where they located her mother. The two had sustained severe injuries but recovered, she said. The girl’s father was among the fatalities.
In a statement after the memo was released publicly, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue said “rescuers spared no effort in this search and rescue operation, and it is important for these first responders to understand the full scope of their efforts.”
“Our hearts remain with all the families of the victims, and we hope they can find some solace in knowing that every possible effort was made to rescue their loved ones,” the statement said.
Trapped woman sounded calm to rescuers
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