ALWAYS a recovery operation

Beyond one boy fortunate to be rescued quickly, the Surfside search was always a recovery operation. The only consolation regarding this avoidable tragedy is that death would have come very quickly for all the tragically unfortunate victims.

"Rescue teams combing the rubble of a collapsed apartment building in Florida are switching from a search-and-rescue mission to a recovery effort.

The decision comes about two weeks after the 12-storey Champlain Towers South fell in the middle of the night. [Rule of 3s: survival = 3 minutes without oxygen, 3 hours in harsh environment, 3 days without water, 3 weeks without food.]

Sixty victims have been found and 80 are still missing, Surfside city officials said on Thursday. No survivors have been found since the initial collapse, and rescue crews say many victims were found in their beds."

Why the delay of the obviously inevitable? Hope springs eternal, and families need time to adjust.