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Widower seeking new start in Florida among those missing in building collapse

Harry Rosenberg Florida condo collapse
Posted at 2:09 AM, Jun 30, 2021
and last updated 2021-06-30 08:28:55-04

A New York City man bought a beachfront condo in Florida to start a new chapter of his life after his wife and parents died.

Now Harry Rosenberg is missing in the rubble of the building in Surfside, along with his daughter and her husband, who were visiting for the Sabbath.

The 52-year-old asset manager had recently moved into Champlain Towers South following the loss of his wife to cancer and his parents to COVID-19.

Rosenberg's new home came with the promise of a fresh start.

"It was extremely difficult," Maurice Wachsmann, a friend of Rosenberg, told the Associated Press. "He did everything for his parents. Family first, before everything."

The cascading tragedies are reminders of the toll the collapse has taken on many families after what was already a grief-filled year.

Rosenberg wasn't the only resident who was seeking a new start following the tragedies of the pandemic. According to the Associated Press, at least one other woman in the building came to the tower after falling ill and recovering from COVID-19.

Another man was visiting Florida to attend the funeral of an old friend who died after being infected, and a Colombian family was in Miami to get the vaccine.