Florida fire and rescue captain breaks down over desperation to find people in collapsed condo
Capt. Eddy Alarcon starts work at midnight as part of the non-stop crews fighting to find anyone alive in the collapsed condo in Surfside, Florida. Speaking to CNN, he broke down talking about his desperation to deliver for the families praying their loved ones are still alive.
Alarcon serves in the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue team, Florida Taskforce 1, as they're approaching the seventh day searching for anyone in the building.
"It's just so hard -- unless you're there, you don't understand how difficult this is. I thank God for the support of my teammates, all the rescue specialists that are doing an amazing job. I've never seen so many people come together. Uh, I'm sorry," he said, casting his eyes downward as they watered.
He explained to CNN host John Berman that none of the rescuers have lost hope. Capt. Alarcon described his day, beginning with a briefing before they all begin cutting away at the pile.
"We're always praying for somebody to be alive, but at the very least, it gives some closure to the families waiting to hear from their loved ones," he explained. "When I say we're trained, I mean the specialty things, working with the tools, trying to move the debris. But nothing could ever prepare you for what we witnessed when we first got here. There's just no way to describe it."
His message to families was trying to reassure them that they're doing everything they can.
"Everything in our power, every single one of us who are here are doing everything in our power to bring somebody out alive or, like I said, just to bring some type of closure and to let them know we're doing everything we can for them," he closed.
To help those impacted by the condo collapse and their families you can donate to the Support Surfside fund — a collaboration of the Miami Heat, the Miami Heat Charitable Fund, the Coral Gables Community Foundation, the Key Biscayne Community Foundation, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and The Miami Foundation, The Miami Herald reported.
You can also donate to the ATJC Aventura Turnberry Jewish Center. They are asking for items including sheets, pillows, phone chargers, and snack food as they continue caring for the families on sight.
See Capt. Alarcon in the video below:
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