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Building collapse lawsuits seek to get answers, assign blame

FILE - In this Friday, June 25, 2021, file photo, rescue personnel work in the rubble at the Champlain Towers South Condo, in Surfside, Fla. Even as the search continues over a week later for signs of life in the mangled debris of the fallen Champlain Towers South, the process of seeking answers about why it happened and who is to blame is already underway in Florida's legal system. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)
FILE - In this Friday, June 25, 2021, file photo, rescue personnel work in the rubble at the Champlain Towers South Condo, in Surfside, Fla. Even as the search continues over a week later for signs of life in the mangled debris of the fallen Champlain Towers South, the process of seeking answers about why it happened and who is to blame is already underway in Florida's legal system. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File) FILE - In this Friday, June 25, 2021, file photo, rescue personnel work in the rubble at the Champlain Towers South Condo, in Surfside, Fla. Even as the search continues over a week later for signs of life in the mangled debris of the fallen Champlain Towers South, the process of seeking answers about why it happened and who is to blame is already underway in Florida's legal system. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)

By MARYCLAIRE DALE and CURT ANDERSON / Associated Press 5 min read

The quest to learn why a Florida condo building collapsed has already moved to the legal system, even before rescuers finish searching for victims and possible survivors.

Authorities have opened criminal and civil investigations into the collapse of the oceanfront Champlain Towers South, which killed at least 32 people and left more than 110 missing. At least five lawsuits have been filed by Champlain Towers families.

“The whole world wants to know what happened here,” Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava told a news conference Tuesday. Everyone, she said, wants to know “what could have been prevented and how we make sure it never happens again.”

Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle has pledged to bring the matter to a grand jury, which will gather evidence and hear testimony, and could recommend criminal charges or needed reforms.

One lawyer involved in the litigation said the collapse raises widespread concerns about infrastructure issues and the trust put in those responsible for them.