SURFSIDE, FL (CelebrityAccess) – Theresa Velasquez, Sr. Vice President, Strategic Partnerships (Live Nation), arrived in Miami on June 23rd to visit her parents at Champlain Towers South, the night before the 12-story building collapsed in one of the deadliest major structural failures in U.S. history.
The question of her identity remained a loose end for the fire department. Officials now say the woman was Theresa Velasquez, a 36-year-old music executive from Los Angeles visiting her parents, Julio Cesar Velasquez (67), and his wife, Angela Maria (60), who also died in the collapse.
After graduating from NYC to earn her master’s degree in music business, she worked for a few record labels before landing at Live Nation, where she was for six years. Billboard included her on its top executive list for Pride Month, as Velasquez worked to create visibility and inclusivity for the LGBTQ+ community, as reported by the Miami Herald.
An earlier report published in USA Today identified the voice as Valeria Barth, a 14-year-old who lived in unit 204, directly below the Velasquez family. Responders on the scene gave differing accounts about the voice they heard coming from under the rubble. Some reported hearing the person say she was from unit 204, while others recalled hearing 304.
A spokeswoman for Gannett, which owns USA Today, said the company is “reviewing the new report from MDFR.” “The facts and the sourcing in our story are clear. We have no additional comment at this time,” she added in a statement to The Washington Post.
“[It] was challenging to hear the woman because of the distance,” the report from Miami-Dade Fire Rescue states, adding that rescue crews said they could only communicate with her “when all operations ceased, and everyone was silenced.” “Even the faintest whisper from the rescue crews or sloshing in the standing water negated any ability to hear the woman,” the report adds.
Rescuers also noted that the woman spoke English with no accent. The report says that video footage of Velasquez reviewed by officials matched her speaking style. Barth’s native language is Spanish, the report notes. The voice also sounded like it belonged to an adult, rescuers said. Additionally, the person said she was visiting her parents and “remained calm when communicating with the rescuers,” according to the report.
Emergency workers removed Velasquez’s body on July 8, nearly two weeks after the collapse. Velasquez’s brother, David, told WFOR that he accepts the findings from the report.
“There is no way to know 100 percent, but it seems like the logical conclusion,” he said.
ORIGINAL STORY BELOW PUBLISHED July 20, 2021 by Ian Courtney
Miami-Dade County, FL (CelebrityAccess) – Police in Miami-Dade County identified the remains of a 36-year-old Los Angeles as a victim of the Surfside condominium collapse.
Theresa Velasquez, Sr. Vice President, Strategic Partnerships (Live Nation), arrived in Miami on June 24th to visit her parents at Champlain Towers South. The night before, the 12-story building collapsed in one of U.S. history’s deadliest major structural failures.
Velasquez’s parents, Angela Maria, 60, and Julio Cesar Velasquez, 67, lived in Apartment 304 in the complex, residing there for nearly a decade.
She started as a performer, DJing events such as Miami Beach’s White Party and New York’s Electric Zoo and Mysteryland USA before becoming Director of Global Brand Partnerships at SFX Entertainment. She transitioned to Live Nation in 2015, accepting a post as Sr. Director of Strategic Alliances and later serving as Vice President of Strategic Partnerships.
After she was first reported missing following the building’s collapse, Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino took to social media to say: “Keeping Theresa Velasquez in our thoughts, one of @LiveNation’s own, and a beloved friend, daughter, sister, and co-worker. Sending love to everyone in Surfside – we need miracles tonight 🙏.”
