Indian-American family among others missing in Florida building collapse

An Indian-American couple and their one-year-old child are among the people who are missing after a building in Florida collapsed. According to the latest data, more than 150 people are still missing while nine have been confirmed dead.

A 12-story residential building collapsed on Thursday night, prompting the search and rescue teams to scour the site for probable people who are alive.

Vishal Patel, 42, his wife Bhavna Patel, 38, and their 1-year-old daughter Aishani Patel are believed to be among the missing, their niece Sarina Patel told CNN, adding that Bhavna Patel is four months pregnant, news agency PTI reported.

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Sarina said she last spoke to her family on Father’s Day.

“I had actually called them to tell them I had just booked a flight to come visit because they’ve been asking me to come to see their home and to meet their daughter. I haven’t met her due to the pandemic,” PTI quoted her as saying.

They were home at the time the collapse took place, she said. “We have tried calling them countless times and there’s just been no answers, text messages, nothing. They haven’t contacted anybody,” she said.

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Bhavna is a British and US citizen, the British media reported.

Umma Kannayan, a family friend of the Patels, told the BBC that they were a “very loving” family who were closely involved in their religious community.

The cause of the partial collapse of the building is yet to be ascertained.