The first funeral has been held for victims of the Surfside Miami building collapse.
Marcus Guara, 52, his wife Ana, 42, and their daughters, Lucia, 10, and Emma, 4, are among the 36 people now known to have died when Champlain Towers South collapsed on June 24.
The family’s funeral was held on Tuesday at St Joseph’s, the Catholic church where the Guaras had worshipped, reported the BBC.
Their funeral is the first to take place following the fall of the building.
During an eulogy for the family, Marcus Guara’s cousin, Peter Milián, said: “Who would have thought a few weeks ago that our community had so many ties to one little building in one small corner of Florida called Surfside.”
He added: “As ironic as it may sound I truly believe God watched over them by not making them suffer without Lucia and Emma,” the BBC reported.
The search for more victims has carried on as Elsa, which strengthened into a Category 1 hurricane on Tuesday, weakened to a tropical storm on Wednesday morning.
Miami has also seen more than three inches of rain since Monday.
County Fire Chief Alan Cominsky said rescuers have not found any “livable spaces” where survivors could have been spared.
But search and rescue teams did pull the remains of eight more victims on Tuesday, which raised the death toll to 36.
This means 109 people who may have been inside Champlain Towers South when it fell on June 24 are still considered missing.
“I ask all of you around the world who continue to follow this story, please keep these victims in your hearts and prayers,” Miami-Dade Mayor Levine Cava said.
