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Surfside survivors demand new investigation and accountability four years after Champlain Towers collapse
Summary
At a Surfside memorial on the fourth anniversary of the Champlain Towers collapse, family members and survivors urged investigators and courts to deliver answers, called for an independent forensic engineering review if the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) cannot, and warned that a new building on the site should never overshadow a memorial.
Pablo, speaking at a Surfside memorial on the fourth anniversary of the Champlain Towers collapse, said he last saw his daughter four days before the building fell and demanded "closure, clarity and accountability." He told the crowd that "NIST, the federal agency in charge, has spent over $30 million for years" but offered only hypotheses, and urged that "if NIST is not able to bring us those answers, then it's time for them to step aside and let a qualified forensic independent engineer take over the investigation."
Pablo also asked the court system to consider reopening the case and extending the statute of limitations, saying "justice has not been served yet." He warned that a new luxury building rising at the site "should still be a crime scene" and urged that developers and Florida Power & Light not interfere with a memorial design, saying the memorial "must never become an access point to that bolt."
Survivor Mara Shuela echoed calls for accountability and accused local officials and some attorneys of abandoning survivors after the collapse. "We were met with silence from the very people who were supposed to protect us and support us," she said, and criticized what she described as headline-focused court rulings and legal teams that profited while failing to provide sustained help.
Organizers and attendees stressed the limits of local authority and framed the demands as calls for clarity about what happened and who is legally responsible. No formal investigatory motion or court action was announced during the memorial; speakers urged continued public pressure and legal avenues for families seeking answers.
The memorial included a coordinated reading of the 98 victims' names and a benediction; participants observed 12 seconds of silence to mark the amount of time witnesses said the building took to fall. The event closed with an appeal from Rabbi Lipker for practical changes to protect residents, including stronger building-safety systems and accountability for warnings that go unheeded.
