Witness to Miami-area building collapse helps save young boy: ‘Like something out of a movie’

First responders are still searching for survivors under the rubble from a condo that partially collapsed in the Miami area early Thursday morning. Police confirmed one person was killed and at least 35 have been rescued so far. 

As of 10 a.m. local time, 51 people remained unaccounted for as a thunderstorm rolled into the area. It is estimated that the building fell around 1:20 a.m. 

Nicholas Balboa, who witnessed the collapse, recounted what he saw and how he helped save a young boy in an interview on “America’s Newsroom.”

MIAMI BUILDING COLLAPSE: HUGE EMERGENCY OPERATION UNDERWAY

Balboa was walking his dog when he felt the ground shake and saw a plume of dust and debris rising from where the Surfside condo building had fallen.

“It was definitely like something you see out of a movie,” he recalled to anchor Bill Hemmer.

Balboa took his dog home and returned to the scene. He said he heard someone yell from the rubble.

“He was just he was screaming and saying, ‘can you see me?’” Balboa said. “We saw his fingers wiggling. So, I let him know that we were here.”

“He was just screaming ‘don’t leave me, don’t leave me.’”

Balboa said he led first responders to the 10-year-old boy. The boy said he was with his mother, but Balboa did not know the status of her recovery.

“I just hope that anybody would do the same for me,” he said. “This wasn’t an act to try and be heroic.”

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“I just hope any decent human being would do that. They would stay regardless of the situation”

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue set up a family reunification center and asked anyone who has family members who are unaccounted for or are safe to call 305-614-1819.

Amy Nelson is a producer with Fox News Digital.