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New Bodycam Footage Shows Surfside Residents Scrambling After Condo Collapse

Residents can be heard asking officers about family members in the building, including a woman asking about her 87-year-old mother

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A fulfilled public records request for first responder bodycam footage shows the first moments police arrived at the scene of the Champlain Towers South partial collapse in Surfside.

NBC 6 had previously shown the initial 18 minutes, but the newly obtained video from Officer Ariol Lage shows an extended version running 1 hour and 37 minutes.

Residents can be heard asking officers about family members in the building, including a woman asking about her 87-year-old mother in the building with "major heart issues."

The bodies of 98 people were recovered at the collapse site after a massive month-long recovery effort.

The video also shows police officers directing residents north past 90th Street, specifically to the Rec Center on 93rd Street and Collins Avenue.

Footage released earlier in August showed the massive response to the Champlain Towers South on Collins Avenue, moments after a section of the building collapsed in the early morning hours of June 24.

"Dude, the building just collapsed," one shocked officer who had just arrived at the scene tells another in one of the videos. "All back that way is collapsed."

Another officer is seen running alongside the portion of the building that's still standing in darkness, as screaming can be heard in the background. He shines a flashlight on the debris, quickly assesses the situation and calls his captain on his cellphone.

"Fire rescue's on the way," the officer says. "This is huge, I mean, humongous."

In another video an officer running to the scene finds people yelling "please help!" near the building's garage area, with cars having fallen into partially collapsed sections of the concrete.

"A lot of dust, I can barely see anything," the officer says over his radio, before responding to the cries for help. "Are you guys ok? Is there anybody with injuries?"

The cause of the collapse remains under investigation.

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