US President Joe Biden met with local leaders in Miami-Dade County Thursday, including Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, following the collapse of the Champlain Towers South condo building last week.
The president offered to have the federal government fully fund the rescue and recovery efforts for the first 30 days, telling the officials that they just had to "pick up the phone" and ask for whatever they needed.
“You know what’s good about this?” Biden asked at the briefing. “It lets the nation know we can cooperate and when it’s really important.”
"This is life and death," he added. “I just got back from 12 days in Europe. They wonder whether we can do this. And you’re doing it.”
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a Republican, praised Biden's handling of the disaster, saying: “You recognized the severity of this tragedy from day one, and you’ve been very supportive.”
“We’re gonna need some mental health support for some of the folks who’ve been in that rubble because it’s not easy to do. But we thank you for the support and we do appreciate that the collaboration for local, state and federal,” DeSantis added.
The death toll from the building collapse currently stands at 18 people, with another 145 people missing.