Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro, coaches provide assistance to victims of Surfside building collapse
the condominium building fell early Thursday morning killing one person and leaving several injured.
Around 100 people are still unaccounted for according to Miami-Dade Police director Alfredo Ramirez III.
“We heard about this in the morning and we heard that first responders have been on the scene here since 2 a.m.,” said Steve Stowe, the vice president and executive director of the Miami Heat Charitable Fund.
“So I rounded up Tyler Herro, Chris Quinn and Eric Glass and we loaded up the Kia Heat truck and a couple of other trucks filled with water and snacks and food for the frontliners.
“(It’s) kind of like what we do when (hurricane) Irma hit or when any of these tragedies happen, and we went to ground zero and unloaded all of the supplies,” Stowe told reporters on the scene. “They spoke to the first responders just to lift their spirits a little bit.”
In a message on social media the team sent condolences to the victims and their families and thanked first responders for their rescue efforts.
Corporate sponsors of the team, World Central Kitchen and Direct Relief are arranging for more food to arrive at the scene and will help find accommodations for people displaced by the collapse.
Other organizations in the Miami area have taken to social media to voice their support including Miami’s Major League Soccer Team and University of Miami head football coach Manny Diaz.
About half of the building’s more than 130 units were affected, according to Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava. Officials fear more may be trapped under the rubble. Why the building collapsed is not immediately known.
Contact Analis Bailey at aabailey@usatoday.com or on Twitter @analisbailey.