UPDATE: Death toll now at 78 in catastrophic Florida condo collapse

A stuffed animal rests on a barricade on the beach near the collapsed Champlain Towers South condominium, in Surfside, Fla., on Wednesday July 7, 2021. Working through the outer bands of a tropical storm, rescue workers recovered the bodies of 10 more victims from the rubble of the condominium in Surfside late Tuesday and early Wednesday, the most they have found in a 12-hour period since the building collapsed nearly two weeks ago. (Saul Martinez/The New York Times)

Greta Lopez visits the makeshift memorial to victims of the Champlain Towers South condo building collapse in Surfside, Fla., on Monday, July 5, 2021. The partial collapse of the Champlain Towers South, has plunged older beachside condos and high-rise buildings like it into a swirl of apprehension. (Mark Abramson/The New York Times)

A family from Brooklyn near the site the then partially collapsed Champlain Towers South condo on Sunday, July 4, 2021, in Surfside, Fla. The intact portion of Champlain Towers South, seen here at right, was demolished Sunday night after concerns were raised about the structure’s stability. (Mark Abramson/The New York Times)

Search and rescue operations resume as members of the Pennsylvania Search and Rescue team comb through the debris several after hours after the Champlain Tower South complex was demolish on Monday, July 5, 2021 in Surfside, Florida. (Carl Juste/Miami Herald/TNS)

Search and rescue workers walk near a memorial to victims of the Champlain Towers South condo building in Surfside, Fla., on Monday, July 5, 2021. The rest of Champlain Towers South was leveled in a controlled explosion Sunday evening after officials became concerned about its stability. (Mark Abramson/The New York Times)

Surfside residents and passers-by stop to reflect at the memorial site on Sunday, July 4, 2021, in Surfside, Florida. (Carl Juste/Miami Herald/TNS)

Miami-Dade County officials, members of Miami-Dade Search and Rescue and Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, as well as police officers gather for a moment of prayer and silence in front of the rubble of the collapsed tower in Surfside, Florida, on Wednesday, July 7, 2021. (Jose A. Iglesias/POOL/AFP/Getty Images/TNS)

Terry Franco reads a book of Psalms in front of a makeshift memorial to people affected by the partial collapse of the Champlain Towers South condo, in Surfside, Fla., on Wednesday July 7, 2021. Working through the outer bands of a tropical storm, rescue workers recovered the bodies of 10 more victims from the rubble of the condominium in Surfside late Tuesday and early Wednesday, the most they have found in a 12-hour period since the building collapsed nearly two weeks ago. (Saul Martinez/The New York Times)

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A stuffed animal rests on a barricade on the beach near the collapsed Champlain Towers South condominium, in Surfside, Fla., on Wednesday July 7, 2021. Working through the outer bands of a tropical storm, rescue workers recovered the bodies of 10 more victims from the rubble of the condominium in Surfside late Tuesday and early Wednesday, the most they have found in a 12-hour period since the building collapsed nearly two weeks ago. (Saul Martinez/The New York Times)

By Tim Darnell and The Associated Press

Updated July 9, 2021

Recovery efforts moved into their third week on Friday in Surfside, Florida, with local officials announcing the death toll now at 78.

Dozens more people remain missing, as reported by the Miami Herald.

Paraguay’s foreign minister said Thursday that rescuers had found in the rubble of a collapsed Florida condominium the bodies of Sophia López Moreira, the sister of Paraguay’s first lady Silvana Abdo, her husband Luis Pettengill and the youngest of their three children.

Foreign Minister Euclides Acevedo told Paraguay’s ABC Cardinal radio station that the two other children and the family’s nanny, Lady Luna, are still missing.

“We ask people for their solidarity and a prayer,” he said. “In the face of a tragedy, Paraguayan people must show their traditional solidarity.”

Juana Villalba, mother of Lady Luna, is in Miami awaiting news about her daughter. Villalba traveled along with her niece Lourdes Luna from their South American country.

The Paraguayans were among several Latin American citizens who were reported in the condominium when it collapsed June 24. Others in the building came from Argentina, Venezuela and Uruguay.

Rescue workers are now focused on finding remains instead of survivors.

About the Authors

Tim Darnell

Tim Darnell is an Atlanta native and veteran of several local, national, and international news, business and sports publications.

The Associated Press

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UPDATE: Death toll now at 78 in catastrophic Florida condo collapse

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