Death toll in Surfside condo collapse rises to 97, one more victim identified

SURFSIDE, Fla. – Crews have recovered the body of another victim in Surfside, bringing the death toll from the Champlain Towers South collapse to 97, officials said Wednesday evening.

Of those 97 victims, 90 have been identified and next of kin have been notified for 88.

Eight remain potentially unaccounted for.

The latest victim to be identified Wednesday is Luis F. Barth Tobar, 51. His body was recovered on Saturday.

Crews have now removed over 22 million pounds of debris and concrete since the June 24 collapse.

On Tuesday, Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said identifying victims has become increasingly challenging in recent days.

“At this step in the recovery process, we’re relying heavily on the work of the medical examiner’s office,” she said. “It’s a scientific, methodical process to identify human remains. This work is becoming more difficult with the passage of time. Although our teams are working as hard as they can, it takes time.”