It’s Monday, July 5th – and NBC 6 has the top stories for the day.
No. 1 - Tropical Storm Elsa continued its approach toward Cuba early Monday morning before it begins to make an impact on the Florida Keys and part of the central section of the state.
The 5 a.m. advisory from the National Hurricane Center has the system with winds of 65 miles per hour while sitting 220 miles southeast of Havana. Elsa is moving to the northwest with winds of 14 miles per hour. Miami-Dade and Broward counties are out of the cone of concern for major impacts from Elsa, while a tropical storm warning remains issued for the Florida Keys from Craig Key west to the Dry Tortugas along with part of the west coast from Flamingo to Englewood. Both Monroe and Miami-Dade counties declared their own state of local emergencies due to the potential effects while Mandatory evacuations in Monroe County are not expected for this storm.
No. 2 - Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency for several Florida counties because of Tropical Storm Elsa, as the system was taking aim at the Sunshine State.
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The counties affected by the state of emergency include: Miami-Dade, Monroe, Charlotte, Citrus, Collier, DeSoto, Hardee, Hernando, Hillsborough, Lee, Levy, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas and Sarasota. Elsa may bring heavy rainfall, flash flooding, storm surge, and strong winds to the Florida Keys on Monday and Tuesday. A voluntary evacuation of mobile homes and liveaboard vessels to safe structures for Monday and Tuesday is likely to follow and county urges visitors and those in RVs and travel trailers in the Florida Keys to consider their Monday and Tuesday travel plans.
No. 3 - The remaining portion of the Champlain Towers South condo building in Surfside was demolished Sunday night.
The structure came down at about 10:30 p.m., and before 11:30 p.m., rescuers were given an all-clear to resume their search, according to Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava. Officials had given a window of the demolition occurring between 10 p.m. and 3 a.m. Monday. Demolition specialists finished boring holes and began laying explosives in them Sunday afternoon as they prepared to bring down the precarious building. The demolition preparations forced the suspension of the search-and-rescue mission Saturday afternoon, but officials said it should eventually open up new areas for rescue teams to explore. No one has been rescued alive since the first hours after the June 24 collapse.
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No. 4 - An attempt to halt the demolition of the remaining Champlain Tower South building in Surfside late Sunday night was denied after county officials saying no animals had been found alive inside before the decision was made.
An emergency hearing was granted after the owners of units in the building filed a motion, with one saying she was willing to go inside and knew the risk associated with it in order to rescue her pet. Ultimately, the motion was denied by Judge Michael Henzman and the building was demolished around 10:30 p.m. on Sunday. As crews prepared to demolish the still-standing portion, officials had reassured families Saturday that they had done their best to look for their missing cherished pets.
No. 5 - After a quick evacuation in which over 300 residents left many personal belongings inside a building deemed unsafe, there are still more questions than answers for the people who call the Crestview Towers Condominium in North Miami Beach their home.
Many residents are still looking for a place to stay. The City of North Miami Beach is working with the American Red Cross to find temporary shelters for displaced residents. The city of North Miami Beach on Friday ordered the 156-unit Crestview Towers Condominium, located at 2025 NE 164th St., to be closed immediately and the evacuation of all residents. After the tragic collapse of the Champlain Towers South condominium in Surfside, Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava ordered an audit of buildings that were 40 years old and older.
No. 6 - Chowdown champ Joey “Jaws” Chestnut broke his own record to gulp to a 14th win in the men’s Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest on Sunday, while Michelle Lesco took the women’s title.
Chestnut downed 76 franks and buns in 10 minutes. That’s one more than he did in setting the men’s record last year, when the contest unfolded without fans because of the coronavirus pandemic. Lesco, of Tucson, Arizona, downed 30 ¾ dogs in 10 minutes and called her win “an amazing feeling.” Reigning women’s champ and record-holder Miki Sudo skipped this year because she’s expecting a baby in a few weeks with fellow competitive eater Nick Wehry. He vied for the men’s title but came up short.
