University students in love found dead on day teams recovered 12 bodies

SURFSIDE, Florida – The official toll of the Surfside building collapse came close to 80 dead on Saturday morning. Families were grieving children, young couples with dreams, and beloved parents and grandparents.

Miami-Dade detectives revealed the identities of four other victims on Friday evening. Search teams recovered two bodies on Thursday: Benny Weisz, 31, and Angela Velasquez, 60.

Ilan Naibryf, 21, and Leidy Luna Villalba, 23, were among 12 dead crews found on Wednesday.

Naibryf, who was born in Argentina and lived in Hawaii, was in love with Deborah Berezdivin, a graduate student at George Washington University, friends said. He followed her to Surfside to support her at the funeral of a COVID-19 victim. Crews also found her dead on Wednesday.

Search teams found the lifeless bodies of Ilan Naibryf and Deborah Berezdivin on Wednesday in Surfside. The couple died in a building collapse on June 24. (WPLG)

Berezdivin, who was born in Puerto Rico, was an aspiring architect. She had already graduated from Tulane University. Naibryf, a student at the University of Chicago, had a degree in physics. He was working on a minor in molecular engineering and planned to graduate in 2022.

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“He was also co-founder and CEO of STIX Financial, a finalist in the College New Venture Challenge 2021, was chairman of the Chabad House student council, was a former member of the men’s track team and was active in the recreational football. We will miss him very much, ”wrote a spokesperson for the university. “We recognize the grief that Ilan’s passing brings to our community. Ilan was a student and a precious friend.

Families mourned two other couples.

Weisz, who was born in Austria, and his wife, Malki Weisz, 27, were visiting his father, Harold Rosenberg, 52. The couple lived in Lakewood, New Jersey. Crews also found Rosenberg dead on Wednesday. The family was waiting for updates on Malki Weisz.

Velasquez, who was born in Colombia, owned a store in downtown Weston. She lived with her husband, Julio Velasquez, 67, and their 36-year-old daughter, Theresa Velasquez, a Live Nation executive. who was visiting them from Los Angeles.

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Malki Weisz, Julio Velasquez and Theresa Velasquez are among 62 people missing since June 24.

FILE – In this file photo from June 24, 2021, rescue workers remove a body from the rubble where a wing of a 12-story oceanfront condominium has collapsed in Miami’s Surfside neighborhood. Miami-Dade’s search and rescue teams have been described as some of the best and most experienced in the world. (AP Photo / Gerald Herbert, file) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Before sunrise, determined teams continued to search for bodies or human remains trapped in the ruins of the ancient 12-story South Champlain Towers at 8777 Collins Ave.

The early morning collapse of the northeast sections of the L-shaped condominium left a mountain of compacted concrete slab. Firefighters evacuated survivors who were in the southern part of the oceanfront building.

Terror, anguish and grief surrounded the region. Hope fed the Miami-Dade Fire Department to convene the eight Florida task forces. Crews from as far away as Virginia and New Jersey have arrived to help. There were teams from Israel and Mexico.

There were intermittent storms and spontaneous fires as teams of 10 to 12 people tunneled through the destruction day and night. There were long, heart-wrenching days filled with sweat and tears during which the crews could only find one or two bodies.

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The work did not stop. Using heavy equipment, the teams were able to remove around 14,000 tonnes of concrete and metal. Workers delivered him to a field of Golden Glades. But with the threat of debris falling from above, the engineers decided to stop the mission. Everything stopped around 2:11 am and resumed at 4:45 pm

President Joe Biden met with relatives, officials and rescuers in Surfside. And when the mission resumed, Tropical Storm Elsa threatened the area. Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava ordered the demolition of what was left standing and everything imploded on the evening of July 4.

A cloud of dust develops at the site after demolition crews tear down the unstable remains of the Champlain Towers South condo building, left, on Sunday, July 4, 2021, in Surfside, Fla. The work of demolition of the remains had suspended the research. rescue and rescue mission, but officials said on Sunday it should eventually open up new areas for rescue teams to explore. (AP Photo / Wilfredo Lee) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

The search and rescue mission ended on Wednesday. The crews stood around the rubble in a solemn moment of silence and prayer. They had found entire families dead. They had seen a Miami firefighter carrying his dead daughter after Florida Task Force 2 Miami recovered her body.

Their commitment has not wavered.

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FULL COVERAGE

July 9 cover

July 8 cover

July 7th cover

The search and rescue operation at the South Champlain Towers transitioned to a search and recovery mission on Wednesday at Surfside.

July 6 cover

Workers walk past the collapsed and demolished Champlain South Towers condominium on Tuesday, July 6, 2021, in Surfside, Fla. (AP Photo / Lynne Sladky) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

July 5 cover

Rescue workers handle a tarp containing remains recovered from the site of the collapsed Champlain Towers South condo building on Monday, July 5, 2021, in Surfside, Florida. The remaining structure was demolished on Sunday, which partially collapsed on June 24. Many people are missing. . (AP Photo / Lynne Sladky) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Cover July 4

FILE – As of Sunday, July 4, 2021, file photo, the remaining structure of the Champlain Towers South condo building is demolished more than a week after its partial collapse in Surfside, Florida. Even though research continues more than a week later for signs of life in the mutilated debris, the process of seeking answers as to why this happened and who is to blame is already underway in the Florida legal system. (AP Photo / Lynne Sladky, file) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Cover July 3

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, left, and his wife Casey leave flags at a makeshift memorial near the Champlain Towers South condo building, where many victims are missing more than a week after its partial collapse, on Saturday July 3, 2021, in Surfside, FL (AP Photo / Lynne Sladky) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Cover July 2

FILE – On this Friday, July 2, 2021, a file photo of search and rescue personnel remove remains on a stretcher as they work atop the rubble at the Champlain Tower South complex in Surfside, Florida. No one has been found alive since the early hours of the June 24 disaster that killed at least 27 people in the town of Surfside, so updating the families has so far been bad news. And what crews find is often not intact. (AP Photo / Mark Humphrey, file) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

July 1 coverage

FILE – On July 1, 2021, President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden visit the Surfside Wall of Hope & Memorial in Surfside, Florida for those missing after the condo tower collapsed earlier in the week. The Bidens spent the day meeting with first responders, local and government officials, and visiting families affected by the collapse. (AP Photo / Susan Walsh, file) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Coverage June 30

Search and rescue personnel work atop the rubble of the Champlain Towers South condo building, where dozens of people are missing nearly a week after its partial collapse on Wednesday, June 30, 2021, in Surfside, in Florida (AP Photo / Lynne Sladky) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Coverage June 29

Rescuers paint the rubble of a collapsed oceanfront condominium, leaving many dead and missing, in Surfside, Fla. On Tuesday, June 29, 2021 (AP Photo / Gerald Herbert) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Coverage June 28

FILE – In this file photo from June 28, 2021, workers dig through the rubble of the Champlain Towers South Condo in Surfside, Florida. Miami-Dade’s search and rescue teams have been described as some of the best and most experienced in the world. (AP Photo / Lynne Sladky, file) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Cover June 27

This aerial image shows a beachfront condominium building that partially collapsed three days earlier, leaving people dead and many people still missing, in Surfside, Fla. On Sunday, June 27, 2021 (AP Photo / Gerald Herbert) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Cover June 26

FILE – On this Saturday, June 26, 2021, file photo, rescuers search the rubble of the Champlain Towers South Condo, in Surfside, Florida. Even though the search continues over a week later looking for signs of life in the mangled debris from the fall of Champlain Towers South, the process of seeking answers as to why this happened and who is to blame is already going on in Florida’s legal system. (AP Photo / Gerald Herbert, file) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Cover June 25

FILE – In this Friday, June 25, 2021, file photo, rescue personnel work in the rubble of the Champlain Towers South Condo in Surfside, Florida. Even though the search continues more than a week later for signs of life in the mangled debris of the fall of Champlain Towers South, the process of seeking answers as to why this happened and who is to blaming is already going on in the Florida legal system. (AP Photo / Gerald Herbert, file) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Cover June 24

This photo from a video provided by ReliableNewsMedia firefighters rescues a survivor from the rubble of Champlain Towers South Condo after the multi-story building partially collapsed in Surfside, Fla., Early Thursday, June 24, 2021 (ReliableNewsMedia via AP).

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