The remains of the final victim at the site of the condo collapse in Surfside, Florida, have been found and identified, according to family members.
The family members told NBC 6 that the remains of Estelle Hedaya were found, bringing the total number of victims identified to 98. Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava later confirmed in a news conference Monday that the final victim was recovered, and Miami-Dade police later confirmed her identity.
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WATCH HEREHedaya was the director of operations for Continental Buying Group and Preferred Jewelers International, where she worked for six years according to her employer.
"She is beloved in the jewelry industry and the outpouring of concern and prayers has been overwhelming," her employer, Joe Murphy, said in a statement.
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Ninety-eight people have died in what officials say is the largest non-hurricane-related emergency response in the history of the state— 97 people have been recovered and identified from the site, and one person died in the hospital.
Crews will continue to search the evidence pile to make sure all identifiable human remains are recovered, Levine Cava said. MDPD teams are also sifting through millions of pounds of debris to look for remains and personal items.
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Local search and rescue teams that spent a month deployed at the Surfside condo collapse site departed Friday.
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue’s Urban Search and Rescue Team, Florida Task Force One, and City of Miami Fire Department's Florida Task Force 2 all took part in the search and rescue at the site.
“It’s extremely difficult, it just consumes you every day that you’re there, you just can’t help but think about your daughter, and all your other loved ones, too, but it’s difficult with kids," Task Force 2 member Nicole Notte said.
Levine Cava and Miami-Dade Fire Chief Alan Cominsky welcomed the Urban Search and Rescue Team back to their home base.
"To each and every one of you from the bottom of my heart, you have shown the world what superheroes look like," Levine Cava said. "Every day, your tenacity, your passion, your dedication, your refusal to give up kept the hope of those families alive, helped them know that we would do anything, I mean you would do anything."
The teams had been searching the site since the building partially collapsed on June 24.
“Providing closure to families was the ultimate test of everybody here and I think we did our best to do that, make sure that everyone knew that we were in it 1,000 percent," said task Force 2 Leader Asst. Chief Scott Dean.
