What Happened During Joe Biden's Visit to Surfside

President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden are on their way to Surfside, Florida to meet with local officials and families of the victims of the Champlain Towers South condominium collapse.

Biden has a packed schedule for the trip. He will first have a briefing with Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, other local leaders and first responders. Then he will thank the first responders and search-and-rescue teams, meet with families of the victims and missing residents. Finally, the president will deliver public remarks at around 4 p.m.

Florida Representative Debbie Wasserman-Schultz and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Deanne Criswell will also join Biden in Surfside.

"They want to thank the heroic first responders, search and rescue teams, and everyone who has been working tirelessly around the clock, and meet with the families who have been forced to endure this terrible tragedy waiting in anguish and heartbreak for word of their loved ones, to offer them comfort as search and rescue efforts continue," White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters Tuesday.

"And they want to make sure that state and local officials have the resources and support they need under the emergency declaration," she added.

Biden approved Florida's emergency declaration and ordered federal assistance to assist local efforts in Sulfide last week.

One week after the tragic collapse of the 12-story beachfront building, search and recovery teams are still mining through the rubble in search of victims and survivors. About 55 of the 136 units in the building were demolished, according to Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Assistant Chief Raide Jadallah.

As of Wednesday, 18 people have died, including two children, and 147 people are missing, according to local officials.

"Any loss of life — especially given the unexpected, unprecedented nature of this event — is a tragedy. But the loss of our children is too great to bear," Cava said during a press conference in Surfside on Wednesday evening. "We're now standing united once again with this terrible new revelation that children are the victims as well."

The cause of the collapse is still unknown at this time. The National Institute of Standards and Technology has established a National Construction Safety Team to investigate the incident.

After meeting with Surfside families, Biden reiterated that there is still no "firm proof" as to why the collapse happened, but lots of "rational speculation." Some of the families he met with believed rising water levels and global warming are to blame, while others have attributed the collapse to improper upkeep of the facility, he said.

Biden praised the families for their resilience, commitment and "willingness to do whatever it took to find an answer."

"I walked away impressed by their strength," he said.

He said that the families awaiting news are "very realistic" about the possibility of a missing member coming back alive at this point, but they still want answers

Additionally, he praised the cooperation he'd witnessed between figures like Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Sen. Marco Rubio and Sen. Rick Scott, saying they all "cut through the bureaucracy" in dealing with the tragedy.