SURFSIDE, Fla. (AP) — A Cambridge woman visiting family in Surfside, Florida described the terrifying moment she heard the wing of a 12-story beachfront condo building collapse just two blocks away from her early Thursday morning.
Anastasia Menchan said the collapse sounded “like a thunder but like, longer and more intense.”
She says she could not believe her eyes when she walked outside and saw the rubble and destruction.
“It’s so difficult just to talk about it because you can’t believe it,” Menchan said. “I’m looking at the building right now and you see balconies hanging, the sofas, people’s clothes hanging, I just can’t imagine.”
She added that after the collapse, she saw people desperately searching for family members.
“You saw police, you heard people screaming, you heard people crying,” she said. “There were people outside crying, looking for their relatives. They were desperate. They were like, ‘My mother is there, my wife is there,’ and there’s nothing to look for because everything is on the ground.”
Rescuers are continue to search for victims. At least one person has died.
This is a developing story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest updates.
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