President Biden and first lady Jill Biden traveled to Surfside, Florida, on Thursday to console families who lost loved ones in the deadly collapse of a condo building, to meet with first responders and to confer with Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis about the week-old recovery operation.
White House deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the Bidens “will meet with the families who have been forced to endure this terrible tragedy, and offer them comfort during this unimaginably difficult time as search and rescue efforts continue.”
The president’s schedule includes about three hours for meeting with the affected families.
“This is a president who understands what loss means,” she said.
More than 150 people are believed to have been killed when a section of the oceanfront building collapsed. Officials have confirmed 18 fatalities, while another 145 people are still missing.
Rescue efforts were halted early Thursday morning over fears that the rest of the building could collapse, after crews noticed widening cracks and up to a foot of movement in a large column, officials said.
Mr. and Mrs. Biden also met with Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava and Federal Emergency Management Agency officials.
In a session with about 50 first responders, the president thanked them for working around the clock to search for bodies and possible survivors in the massive, unsteady pile of rubble.
“What you’re doing now is just hard as hell to deal with, even psychologically, to deal with,” the president told them. “Until we need you, no one fully appreciates what you do. But I promise you — we know. We know. What you’re doing here is incredible, having to deal with the uncertainty, and worrying about the families.”
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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