Indiana Task Force 1 to assist in the rescue

Indiana Task Force 1 sends 80 urban search and rescue experts to Surfside, Fla. To assist with search and rescue after the The Champlain towers collapse, according to a statement.

Indiana Task Force 1, a team of first responders from across Indiana, will assist in efforts to rescue or recover the 147 people still missing in the collapse.

Champlain Towers, a condominium in South Florida, collapsed early in the morning last Thursday. The death toll was 16 on Wednesday afternoon, but it is likely to rise.

“We leave no one behind”: Death toll rises to 16 in deadly Florida condo collapse

A letter to the treasurer of the Champlain Towers Condominium Association in October 2018 warned of “major structural damage” to the building’s parking lot, in addition to design flaws and insufficient waterproofing, USA Today reported.

In the past, Indiana Task Force 1 has been deployed to assist with tropical storms and other disasters. Members of the task force rescued more than 100 people from Flooding during Hurricane Florence in North Carolina in 2018.

Indiana Task Force 1 left for Florida on Wednesday evening.

Some of the equipment brought in by the task force included boat engines, medical equipment and crates of water bottles.

Each member of the task force traveling to Surfside was given a sports bag containing protective clothing and gear, in addition to boots, gloves and a radio.

Pulliam Fellow Lukas Flippo contributed to this report.

Contact Claire Rafford, IndyStar Pulliam Fellow, at crafford@gannett.com or on Twitter @clairerafford.