The person injured after a Miami-Dade Fire Rescue training went wrong on Friday has died, Miami-Dade Police said Saturday.
The announcement came just hours after Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava released a statement pushing for an investigation into the incident that occurred during the training exercise.
The 28-year-old man, whose identity has not been released, was hospitalized as crews battled the third-alarm fire at a building near Miami International Airport.
Authorities said the victim was a relative of a Miami-Dade Fire Rescue firefighter and was not an employee of Miami-Dade County.
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Firefighter Francisco Camero confirmed to NBC6 on Sunday that his son was the victim who died.
The fire broke out around 10:30 a.m. at the three-story building in the 6500 block of Northwest 36th Street across the street from the airport. NBC6 sources with direct knowledge of the training said Miami-Dade Fire Rescue was in the building with a live fire.
Levine Cava told NBC6 on Sunday that she is devastated and is determined to get answers.
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"We have to understand exactly what happened which requires a full investigation, which I've requested because this should not have happened and its a great tragedy for the family, its a great tragedy for our fire rescue team and for the whole community," she said.
She released a similar statement on Saturday, before the victim died from his injuries.
"I was deeply saddened to learn about an accident that took place during a training exercise with Miami-Dade Fire Rescue personnel," Levine Cava said. "I have asked our Chief of Public Safety to lead a full investigation into the events that took place yesterday along with a comprehensive review of protocols and practices – to ensure we do everything possible to prevent an incident like this in the future, to keep our firefighters and first responders safe."
Aerial footage from Chopper 6 showed smoke coming out of the building as multiple Miami-Dade Fire Rescue crews responded, using ladders to get to the roof and smashing windows to get inside.
More than 30 rescue vehicles responded to the scene, including engine trucks, ambulances and others.
Sources also said someone was inside the warehouse who was not supposed to be there, and that person was injured and taken to a local hospital.
Chopper 6 did spot a Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Helicopter transporting one person to Jackson Memorial Hospital's Ryder Trauma Center.
Earlier Friday, officials had said that that there were several patients who were being assessed at the scene.
The cause of the fire is under investigation, officials said.
Jimmy Patronis, Florida's Chief Financial Officer and the state's Fire Marshal, posted about the incident on X.
"Terrible situation in Miami today. I’ve been in touch with local officials and fire investigators from my office are en route to the scene to assist @MiamiDadeFire with the fire investigation," Patronis posted. "Please join me in praying for those injured in this unfortunate incident."
Patronis' communications director also released a statement on the fire.
"This fire investigation is open and ongoing at this time. The DFS (Department of Financial Services) investigation will focus solely on the cause of the fire incident," the statement read. "Any details regarding injuries should be directed to the local authorities."
Check back with NBC6 for updates.
