Biden to meet families of victims in Florida condo collapse; death toll rises to 18 with two children among dead: What we know

A week after a condo building collapsed outside Miami, the death toll continues to slowly climb as hundreds of workers continue non-stop search and rescue efforts. Now two children have been identified among the dead.

Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava announced that two of the six bodies found in the rubble Wednesday were children, ages 4 and 10. This raises the death toll to 18; 147 people are still missing.

As families grow weary of the wait for news of their loved ones, Tropical Storm Elsa formed overnight, threatening further weather-related delays in the search. Crews are keeping a close eye on the progression of the storm as it moved quickly toward the Caribbean.

President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden will travel to Florida on Thursday to meet with first responders and families of victims.

Here's what we know Thursday:

The victims: Remembering those who died in the condo building collapse in Surfside, Florida

Two children among the dead

The bodies of the two children found under the rubble were identified as Lucia and Emma Guara, ages 10 and 4, respectively. Their parents, Anaely Rodriguez, 42, and Marcus Joseph Guara, 52, have also been confirmed dead.

"Any loss of life, especially given the nature of this unexpected, unprecedented event, is a tragedy,'' Levine Cava said. "But the loss of our children is too great to bear."

Following a Monday vigil, community members gathered at a makeshift memorial near the site. Two of them were Navah Lisman and Siena Falcone, 11-year-old schoolmates of Lucia. They were also friends with her sister.

Navah said she cried with her friends during the vigil, which offered her an opportunity to mourn in community with others.

"Seeing this makes it a bit more real, which is saddening for me, but it's the truth," she said. "When you are with people who are all grieving for the same cause, it just makes you feel a little better."

President Biden's schedule for Florida visit

President Joe Biden and the first lady are scheduled to arrive in Miami at 9:30 a.m. Thursday before a briefing with first responders and local leaders, including Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

He also will "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 said.

Here is the rest of Biden's schedule, according to the White House:

11 a.m.: Meeting with first responders, search and rescue teams, rescue workers and others involved

12:30 p.m.: Meeting with victims' families

3:50 p.m.: Remarks from President Biden

After 5 p.m.: Departing from Miami

Biden visits Florida: 5 things to watch as Biden visits, meet with victims' families

Tropical Storm Elsa brewing

Rescue and recovery teams are keeping a close eye on Tropical Storm Elsa, which formed Thursday morning as the system moved quickly toward the Caribbean.

The National Hurricane Center's cone of uncertainty puts all of South Florida in the storm's potential path, and residents have been encouraged to monitor the storm and make necessary preparation. But it is unclear at this point how, if at all, the storm will impact Florida and other parts of the country.

AccuWeather meteorologists are concerned that Elsa could strengthen quickly into a hurricane as it approaches the Windward Islands.

Possible severe weather may cause delays in search and rescue efforts, Kevin Guthrie, of the Florida Division of Emergency Management, said Wednesday.

Guthrie said his team's working with the National Hurricane Center and state meteorologists to develop contingency plans for severe weather, including tropical cyclones, adding that they may need to free up state assets centered at the site of the collapse in order to respond to severe weather. On Tuesday, Guthrie said the threat of severe weather prompted state officials to ask the federal government for the additional team.

"If a system does develop, we have a contingency plan ... of how we'll continue to respond here while responding to the hurricane," Guthrie said.

Rescuers had already been coping with near-daily bouts of thunderstorms and lightning, which forced temporary suspensions of rescue efforts. Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett said he has received questions from frustrated family members about why rescue efforts halt during thunderstorms.

Tropical Storm Elsa: Surfside rescue teams keep watchful eye on the Atlantic

Remembering those who have died

Of the 18 people confirmed dead, 12 have been identified by authorities.

Authorities released these names of victims who have been identified: Stacie Fang, 54; Marcus Joseph Guara, 52; Frank Kleiman, 55; Michael Davis Altman, 50; Leon Oliwkowicz, 80, and his wife Christina Beatriz Elvira de Oliwkowicz, 74; Luis Bermudez, 26, and his mother Ana Ortiz, 46; Antonio Lozano, 83; Gladys Lozano, 79; Manuel LaFont, 54; Hilda Noriega, 92; Anaely Rodriguez, 42; Lucia Guara, 10; and Emma Guara, 4.

The first victim to be identified was Fang, whose 15-year-old son was pulled alive from the wreckage.

Is this still a search and rescue mission?

Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett said many anxious families have asked him when efforts will turn from a rescue to a recovery mission and wondered how long a person could survive under the heaps of rubble.

A week after the collapse, authorities continue to call it a search and rescue effort rather than search and recovery. Workers continued sifting through the rubble, listening and looking for signs of life.

"We're not leaving anybody behind," Burkett said Wednesday. "This is going to go until we pull everyone out of there."

Agency that examines 'disasters and failures' to investigate cause of of collapse

The National Institute of Standards and Technology has established a National Construction Safety Team to investigate the building collapse, its director, James Olthoff, said Wednesday evening in Miami.

Olthoff said it will be a "fact-finding, not a fault-finding technical investigation" that could potentially take several years to complete. It won't end until the team finds the "likely cause" of the collapse.

The NIST is a non-regulatory agency that looks at "disasters and failures" caused by earthquakes, fire and tornadoes. The team will include NIST staff members and outside experts.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki has previously said President Joe Biden believes the reasons for the collapse need to be investigated, and various federal agencies are already providing expertise. State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said she will pursue a grand jury investigation into what led to the collapse.

– Katherine Lewin, Florida Times-Union

Officials ask for donations to support grieving families

People can send donations to families affected by the condo collapse at supportsurfside.org. Officials cautioned that one fake donation website has already been reported.

Over the course of two news conferences, Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett told the story of 12-year-old Ellie Shella, who lost her father and an uncle to the collapse and was praying when he met her at the site.

On Tuesday evening, Burkett said Ellie's mother is in financial distress, pointing out Ellie's father was the provider for the family. Ellie's mother has asked for assistance for her family.

"It's working, your donations are having an impact," Burkett said.

Contributing: Jesse Mendoza, Sarasota Herald-Tribune; Jennifer Sangalang and Doyle Rice USA TODAY

Contact News Now Reporter Christine Fernando at cfernando@usatoday.com or follow her on Twitter at @christinetfern.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Florida condo collapse: President Joe Biden to visit Surfside