SURFSIDE, Fla. — Search teams found the bodies of three people overnight in the rubble of a Miami Beach-area condo building that partially collapsed, while officials said 159 people are now unaccounted for.

Eleven injuries were reported, with four people treated at hospitals.

Teenager Jonah Handler was rescued from the rubble hours after the collapse, but his mother, Stacie Fang, died. Relatives issued a statement expressing thanks “for the outpouring of sympathy, compassion and support we have received.”

“There are no words to describe the tragic loss of our beloved Stacie," it said.

The situation remains dangerous as debris continues to fall on crews searching for missing people who could be trapped at the Champlain Towers South building in Surfside, officials said Friday morning. 

“Debris is falling on them as they do their work. We have structural engineers on site to ensure that they will not be injured, but they are proceeding because they are so motivated and they are taking extraordinary risk on the site every day,” Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said.

Teams searched from the underground parking garage, where they heard banging but no sounds of voices or cries for help, as they tried to access potential voids where survivors may be. They have been placing sonar and listening devices on and in the debris pile to help them detect any signs of life.

“Every time we hear a sound, we concentrate on those areas,” Assistant Miami-Dade Fire Chief Raide Jadallah told the Associated Press.

Crews on Friday were bringing in more heavy machinery to help clear out the rubble and debris. 

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue tweeted out a video of teams attempting to cut through debris and tunnel their way into parts of the collapsed building.

Spectrum News has confirmed an urban search and rescue team from the Orlando area is headed to Surfside to help relieve Miami-Dade teams, who have been working over 24 hours. 

On Friday morning, Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava confirmed that three bodies had been pulled from the rubble overnight, bringing the official death toll to four. The names of the victims have not been released.

The condo tower collapsed at about 1:30 a.m. Thursday. No cause for the collapse has been determined yet.

Video of the collapse showed the center of the building appearing to tumble down first and a section nearest to the ocean teetering and coming down seconds later, as a huge dust cloud swallowed the neighborhood.

About half the building’s roughly 130 units were affected, and rescuers pulled at least 35 people from the wreckage in the first hours after the collapse. But with 159 still unaccounted for, work could go on for days.

Missing people come from all over the world

The people unaccounted for are not just from America. Israeli media say the counsul general in Miami believes 20 Israeli citizens are missing.

Nine people from Argentina, six from Paraguay, four from Venezuela and three from Uruguay are also believed to be missing. 

Among the Paraguayan citizens still unaccounted for is Sophia Lopez Moreira and her family. Moreira is the sister of Paraguay's first lady, Silvana Abdo. 

On Friday families of the missing were bused to a hotel about a block away from the building, leaving the reunification center where updates were provided since Thursday. The county says they are getting updates every few hours on search and rescue efforts.

Resources are also being provided for thefamilies, such as food, shelter and money to assist with basic needs and grief counseling. The Red Cross is also providing temporary housing. 

Rachel Spiegel described her mother, 66-year-old Judy Spiegel, who was among the missing, as a loving grandmother known for chauffeuring her two granddaughters everywhere, advocating for Holocaust awareness and enjoying chocolate ice cream every night.

“I’m just praying for a miracle," Spiegel said. "We’re heartbroken that she was even in the building.”

President Biden has authorized Federal Emergency Management Agency support, South Florida officials said, after Gov. Ron DeSantis signed an emergency declaration for the county the night before. The FEMA personnel will work with Florida Emergency Management.

DeSantis said he spoke to the president for about an hour Friday, and Biden pledged to give the state whatever was needed, including help in investigating how the building collapsed. 

Meanwhile, a lawsuit has already been filed against Champlain Towers South Condominium Association by one of the condo owners, claiming "repair needs had been identified" regarding some structural issues with the building, but those repairs were not handled. The owner is accusing the condo association of negligence.

Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.

GALLERY: The collapse of the Champlain Towers South building in Surfside

LIVE UPDATES: Condo building collapses in South Florida

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