AN elderly Filipina American is among the hundreds of residents missing from the collapse of a condominium building block near Miami Beach in Florida on Thursday, June 24.
Maricoy Obias-Bonnefoy, 70, and her husband, Claudio Bonnefoy, 85, who resided in unit 1001 on the 10th floor of the Champlain Towers South Condominium, are still unaccounted for.
The couple’s nephew, Jonathan Sanchez, posted a call for information on his missing aunt and uncle in a tweet that has garnered over a thousand retweets since Friday, June 25.
“My aunt and uncle lived on the 10th floor in unit 1001 of the Surfside building that collapsed. Their names are Maricoy Obias-Bonnefoy and Claudio Bonnefoy. If anyone has seen them or has any information please let me know. Thank you very much,” he wrote.
My aunt and uncle lived on the 10th floor in unit 1001 of the Surfside building that collapsed.
Their names are Maricoy Obias-Bonnefoy and Claudio Bonnefoy.
If anyone has seen them or has any information please let me know. Thank you very much #Surfside pic.twitter.com/g1te0xX4eE
— jonathan (@jonathanlsanch) June 24, 2021
Meanwhile, Maricoy’s cousin, Ajit Jimenez, posted on Facebook, asking for prayers.
“Please pray for my cousin, Manay Maricoy Obias-Bonnefoy and her husband, Claudio Bonnefoy, they are still missing from yesterday’s collapsed 12 storey building in Miami, Florida. They are still unaccounted for,” she said Friday.
In an interview with ABC News, Bettina Obias said her aunt and uncle are likely in the rubble.
Obias, according to reporter Stephanie Ramos, landed at 6 a.m. Thursday morning from D.C. mere hours after the collapse. She supposedly took the last-minute trip to visit her aunt and uncle to spend time with them.
“I screamed and cried,” Obias said, referring to the building’s collapse.
According to her, their family doesn’t want the Bonnefoys “hurt or be in pain, at the same time if they want to be alive and are fighting for their lives, I hope God lets them live.”
The incident happened at about 1:30 a.m. on Thursday, as reported by WPBF 25 News.
Champlain Towers is made up of three buildings that are each 12 stories tall and contain 342 units. Its oceanfront side, which has 136 units, partially collapsed, taking down approximately 55 units.
At least 11 people have been confirmed dead following the collapse, while as many as 159 residents remain unaccounted for, as of Monday.
“We were able to recover four additional bodies in the rubble as well as additional human remains,” Miami-Dade County mayor Daniella Levine Cava said Sunday, June 27.
“As of today, one victim passed away in the hospital and we’ve recovered eight more victims on site so I am confirming today that the death toll is at nine,” she added.
Search and rescue teams have been sifting through the rubble for survivors since the incident. However, initial efforts were slowed down by a fire in the debris mountain.
“Our rescue teams are non-stop, doing all that we can, searching every area, every bit of hope to see if we can find a live victim,” assured Miami-Dade Fire Chief Alan Cominsky.
Cava, for her part, said teams had cut a “deep trench” through the pile of twisted debris to assist in the search.
“It’s now 125 feet in length into the pile, it’s 20 feet wide and 40 feet deep,” she said.
A 2018 structural report from Morabito Consultants for the condominium “detailed significant cracks and breaks in the concrete.”
In a statement released Saturday, June 26, the structural engineering firm said it provided an estimate to “make the extensive and necessary repairs” to the condo association.
It also said that Morabito was retained by the condo association in June last year for the building’s 40-year repair and restoration process.
According to the firm, there were roof repairs taking place at the time of the collapse, but concrete restoration had not started.
“We are deeply troubled by this building collapse and are working closely with the investigating authorities to understand why the structure failed. As we do so, we also continue to pray for all those impacted by this tragic event,” it said in a statement. (AJPress)
