Eighty-two-year-old Gloria Usheroff has a bad heart and a hard time talking after suffering a stroke. But she doesn’t let that slow her down.

Gloria Usheroff, resident: “I want to go to bingo, and I can’t.”

Gloria lives at the Five Star Premier Residences in Hollywood. It’s a sprawling senior living apartment complex which boasts about having live entertainment, art classes and movie nights.

But Gloria, who lives on the fourth floor, has a hard time getting to any of those activities, because her elevator is broken.

Carol Flynn, Gloria’s sister: “Since April, when we had that big flood. The one that she depends on, water got into the bottom and ruined an electrical part.”

Gloria’s sister Carol says, while there are elevators working in the building, they are too far away for Gloria.

Carol Flynn: “With the short distance of the walking that she does, her breathing is so labored. She has to stop along the way, catch her breath and keep going.”

And since she eats in the community dining room, she has to make that trek at least twice a day.

Carol Flynn: “They have raised her rent over $700 since the elevator has been down. You don’t raise someone’s rent when they’re being inconvenienced like that.”

Carol says she has been in constant contact with building managers for almost a year.

Carol Flynn: “I have over 35 to 40 emails back and forth about the elevator.”

First, she was told there weren’t any parts because of COVID. Then, that the elevator would be fixed in November.

Now, three months later, the manager told her they’re waiting on an inspection from the county.

Carol Flynn: “I don’t know what to believe anymore. One hand, he’s telling me he’s got a two-week window and it’s going to be up and running. Next text, nothing. No inspection, not even a date now.”

A county spokesperson tells us they did inspect one elevator earlier this month, but it failed because of several violations. After we reached out, the county also discovered that the working elevators did not have the proper safety certifications, which for Carol, is the worst news for her sister.

Carol Flynn: “It just annoys me because I would move her in a heartbeat, Heather. But being she has aphasia and cannot communicate, it’s hard for her to make friends.”

We went to management to find out when the elevator would be fixed. They told us to contact the corporate office.

Days later, a spokesperson told 7 Investigates, the elevator near Gloria’s apartment was fixed, inspected and fully functional.

Carol Flynn: “And without you, what would we do?

Gloria Usheroff : “Right.”

Carol Flynn: “We owe you a ton of gratitude. Thank you so, so much for putting her smile back on her face.”

Now Gloria can once again enjoy all the activities with her friends.

Heather Walker, 7News.

CONTACT 7 INVESTIGATES:
305-627-CLUE
954-921-CLUE
7Investigates@wsvn.com

Chara Fitzpatrick moved to Hollywood with her young kids so she could be closer to her dad.

Chara found a one room apartment for $1,400 a month.

Chara Fitzpatrick, apartment leaks: “We were looking for somewhere for six months to a year. You know, get settled in the town, look for things, find good jobs.”

But her plans started crumbling when the summer rains caused her ceiling to fall apart.

Chara Fitzpatrick: “They said that they were going to send people to fix it. They didn’t even go on the roof. They just took the sheet rock down and replaced the sheet rock and painted over it.”

When the rains kept coming, so did the damage.

Chara Fitzpatrick: “And I woke up to them crying, and it was just dripping water on them, and there was just roof debris on them.”

Robin Er, trailer leaks: “I was sound asleep, and it started raining, and I’m like, ‘Oh, I’m getting wet.'”

Robin Erb has rain coming in the bedroom window of the trailer she rents in Davie.

Robin Erb: “See that right here? It’s all – the walls are ready to cave in.”

Robin asked her landlord to fix the leaks.

Robin Erb: “He came over and looked and said, ‘I’ll get somebody on it.'”

But he didn’t.

Robin Erb: “This is where there’s black mold.”

She now has mold growing on her ceiling.

Chara also believes she has mold, and it made her daughter sick.

Chara Fitzpatrick: “She started getting feverish, and then after about two days that I couldn’t break it. I took her into the ER.”

She had pneumonia, so the family moved into a hotel. Her landlord still hasn’t fixed the leaks.

Chara Fitzpatrick: “He feels like we’re desperate and have nothing else, so we’re gonna do whatever our – you know, deal with it just like the other tenants have.”

Finding an apartment to rent is very difficult in South Florida.

Miami-Dade is the most competitive rental market in the U.S. Broward County is ranked ninth, and landlord complaints are on the rise.

Alexander Johnson, tenant lawyer: “In a tight market, the landlords frequently feel that there’s no real incentive to retain tenants when they can get new ones at higher prices.”

While most Florida laws benefit landlords, Alexander Johnson says renters can still fight for their rights.

Alexander Johnson: “If there’s something that needs to get fixed, you need to fill out this seven day notice form, notice of noncompliance. Until you use this form, you don’t have any rights.”

Johnson says list everything that’s wrong with the unit and then send it by email, regular mail, or even text message to your landlord. Your landlord then has seven days to fix the problem.

Alexander Johnson: “The tenant needs to document what, if anything, happened during the seven days.”

If nothing is done, you can then legally withhold your rent. But under Florida law, your landlord can still file for an eviction, and even if you win in court, that eviction stays on your record.

Alexander Johnson: “Even though the tenant did exactly what the state of Florida told him to do, it still shows up as an eviction.”

Chara still hasn’t heard from her landlord and stopped paying rent, but lives in fear he’s going to try to evict her family.

Chara Fitzpatrick: “The housing market is very high right now, so it is harder to find a spot.”

Robin doesn’t want to move, so she taped plastic around the window to stop the leaks.

Robin Erb: “He wanted me to take that down. He fought with me about taking it down because it didn’t look right.”

If your landlord isn’t fixing things in your apartment, links to the seven day notice form, along with instructions, are at the end of this report.

Friday in our special series, “Paradise Lost,” we talk to seniors who are struggling with the rising cost of housing in South Florida.

Karen Hensel, 7News.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

7-DAY NOTICE FORM:
static1.squarespace.com/static/5de2ca573d393a7e062b6144/t/63af3def8772f76aafee333e/1672429054561/7+Day+notice+to+cure+new.pdf

INSTRUCTIONS FOR 7-DAY NOTICE:
static1.squarespace.com/static/5de2ca573d393a7e062b6144/t/5e3ddfa57895e322668efd5d/1581113253162/7+DAY+NOTICE+TO+CURE+-+INSTRUCTIONS.pdf

ATTORNEY ALEXANDER JOHNSON’S WEBSITE:
browardlandlord.com

CHAPTER 83/LANDLORD TENANT LAWS:
leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0000-0099/0083/0083.html

7 Investigates was there for the reunion.

Here’s Karen Hensel.

Timothy Sweat/Bear’s owner: “My baby bear. I know. I miss you so much. Oh my goodness. Daddy’s here.”

Timothy Sweat has spent the last 91 days fighting for this moment.

Timothy Sweat: “My little baby boy. My little baby boy.”

On July 26, someone tried to take his dog Bear while they were on a walk in Dania Beach. Timothy fought the person off but he was severely beaten and rushed to the hospital Police took Bear to animal care for safe keeping but the shelter did not keep the Yorki-poo safe for Timothy.

Timothy Sweat: “The second I got out of the hospital, still bleeding, still had the tags on me, I got to the animal shelter and they just politely walked out and said, ‘He’s gone and we gave him away.'”

Through 7 Investigates, Timothy made a public plea to the woman who adopted Bear, Sharon Barnett

But Barnett refused to take his calls and our calls. She wouldn’t talk to us when we caught up with her at home.

With no other option, Timothy sued her in court.

Barnett told the court she gave Bear to her godson and the dog was in New Jersey.

The court ruled Bear likely belonged to Tim and he was “entitled to take possession” of the dog.

Gregory Elder/Timothy’s attorney: “So, I think she knew there was a process server and that the day of reckoning was coming.”

Attorney Gregory Elder was getting ready to ask the court to order Barnett to bring Bear back to Florida, but the family in New Jersey suddenly said they would give Bear back.

Gregory Elder: “It was a culmination of terrible events happening one after another, you know, and ultimately, of course, the worst part of it is he had to resort to the legal system.”

7 Investigates flew with Timothy to New Jersey for the reunion he feared would never happen. He was nervous until the moment bear ran into his arms.

Timothy Sweat: “My baby. We’re going to go home. Ya, we’re going to go home.”

Timothy flew Bear back here to Fort Lauderdale the same day. He is still considering a lawsuit against animal control for the money he’s spent on lawyers and flights, but for now, is just glad to have Bear back where he belongs.”

Timothy Sweat: “We’re just going to enjoy each other’s company and just get back into our normal routine and start our life again.”

A life filled with the kind of joy a precious pet can bring.

Karen Hensel, 7News.

CONTACT 7 INVESTIGATES:
305-627-CLUE
954-921-CLUE
7Investigates@wsvn.com

This is Bear. Timothy Sweat adopted him when he was just a puppy.

Timothy Sweat: “He is a very sweet little boy. He is a Yorkie-poo, spoiled. He’s 3 years old, and we have never been apart.”

But that changed on July 19, when Timothy took Bear for an evening walk near Federal Highway and Northeast First Street in Dania Beach.

Timothy Sweat: “I was approached by a young man who seemed very interested in my dog, and then he attempted to take my dog. And when I stopped him, he assaulted me.”

Timothy was so badly beaten, he suffered a brain injury and had to be hospitalized for nearly two weeks.

Broward Sheriff’s Office deputies took Bear to Broward County Animal Care.

Timothy Sweat: “He was supposed to be taken into protective services while I was in surgery, and I’ve heard that they keep dogs up to three weeks if you’re out in a medical situation. And my dog was put up for adoption after seven days and adopted quickly.”

The woman who adopted Bear is Sharon Barnett of Margate. Timothy says he called her every day to ask her to return Bear.

He says she only talked to him once.

Timothy Sweat: “She listened to what I had to say, and she goes, ‘I have no further comment.’ And now there’s been no response from her whatsoever.”

We tried to talk to Sharon Barnett at her home.

Karen Hensel: “I’m Karen with 7News. Can we talk to you about the dog that you adopted?”

She would not answer our questions.

Timothy says he felt his only choice was to hire a lawyer.

Marcy Lahart, Sweat’s attorney: “It’s unfortunate that this had to happen. If this person who adopted the dog had an ounce of compassion, she would return the dog to its rightful owner who loves and needs the dog.”

Attorney Marcy Lahart says the shelter had no right to adopt Bear out in the first place.

Marcy Lahart: “Never have I seen a situation where the animal control knew exactly who owned the dog and where that person was, and they were in the hospital, no less, and just said, ‘Too bad, so sad, you didn’t get here in five days, so your dog is no longer yours.'”

Lahart says Bear was microchipped, and Timothy never gave permission for him to be adopted, so they’re asking a judge to order Sharon Barnett to return the dog.

Timothy, meanwhile, is slowly recovering from his injuries.

Timothy Sweat: “Other than my vision and my balance at times, I’m on the road to recovery, but it’s just a slow process. They said there’s no time frame for improving your brain.”

But his broken heart would be healed if he could get Bear back.

And he has a message for Sharon Barnett.

Timothy Sweat: “This is my child. You can’t keep him. That’s it.”

A judge still has to review the court filing. Meanwhile, Timothy now has legal bills on top of his mounting hospital bills.

He has started a GoFundMe page. If you would like to make a donation, click here.

CONTACT 7 INVESTIGATES:
305-627-CLUE
954-921-CLUE
7Investigates@wsvn.com

From the moment he picked up a camera, John Bouma knew he wanted to photograph pets. So he decided to get some practice at a local animal shelter.

John Bouma, pet photographer: “I was looking for ways to volunteer that would allow me to practice, and I found out that animal shelters love having volunteer photographers come.”

Little did he know, his practice would become a passion.

For the last 10 years, John has volunteered to spend a morning a week with the dogs at Miami-Dade Animal Services.

John Bouma: “The shelter brings in a lot of dogs, so they’re only able to take a quick photo of the dog when it first comes to the shelter. Obviously, the dogs are confused and a little sometimes scared, so it doesn’t come across really well in their photos.”

He takes pictures of dogs that have been at the shelter a long time. The hope is to find them a home.

John Bouma: “Providing my photos to the shelter, as well as sharing them on my own social media channels, I believe it’s helped a lot of dogs and cats get adopted quicker or just adopted in general.”

But all of us who have tried to photograph own pets know it’s not easy. So how does John manage to get great photos of dogs he just met?

John Bouma: “We use a number of techniques. We always have yummy treats, sometimes a squeaker toy to get their attention when looking at the camera.”

And even on a day when there is a raging thunderstorm, John is able to put the dogs at ease and get a great shot.

John Bouma: “Ideally, the goal is, when photographing a dog, you want it to look its best. With a dog, that typically means ears forward. If we’re lucky, we might get a head tilt and smiling.”

Seeing the dogs relaxed and playful is part of the fun for John.

He hopes his photos will show people that these shelter dogs are loving animals in need of a happy home.

John Bouma: “People that don’t know think that there’s something wrong with the dogs at the shelter, that the whole reason they got here was because they’re broken in some way, and that couldn’t be further from the truth.”

And the truth for this photographer is, being here, in a raging thunderstorm, with these dogs is exactly where he wants to be.

John Bouma: “I find doing this a little more satisfying, because I know I’m helping these dogs, and it’s really rewarding.”

And he believes the biggest reward is for the family who finds the picture perfect dog.

Karen Hensel, 7News.

If you know of a person, place or group that you think we should highlight, email us at 7spotlight@wsvn.com.

Yoli Alvarez has spent her entire life in Miami.

Yoli Alvarez: “I was raised in Wynwood, and single mom and two sisters.”

Her mom always told her if she applied herself, she could become anything she wanted.

So in high school, Yoli told her mom she wanted to be a soldier in the Army.

Yoli Alvarez: “I said, ‘Hey, Ma, I joined the military.’ She was like, “No,’ she didn’t believe me until, actually, the sergeant came to pick me up.”

Yoli says there is something special about serving her country.

Yoli Alvarez: “I started as a Morse code interceptor. I was assigned to the National Security Agency, NSA.”

But by her late 20s, she wanted to come home to serve her community. Yoli joined the fire academy.

Yoli Alvarez: “Back then, I weighed like 112 pounds; everything weighed more than I did. And it was hard, I’m not going to sit here and lie to you and say it was easy. No, it was brutally hard.”

But her hard work paid off.

Yoli Alvarez: “This right here was when I actually graduated as a firefighter. This is a proud moment.”

Yoli remembers the heartbreak of her very first emergency call after graduation.

Yoli Alvarez: “My first call was actually a pregnant female that was overdosed, and sadly, you know, she didn’t – she nor the baby made it.”

During the course of her 33-year career, Yoli served on the elite search-and-rescue team. Her hard work and dedication got her noticed.

Yoli Alvarez: “This is when I got promoted to lieutenant, proud moment.”

And then district chief, where she oversees five fire stations, the Technical Rescue Team and the dive team.

Even though the journey was tough, she says it was all worth it.

Yoli Alvarez: “I wanted to help people, I just want to help people in the time of need.”

The challenge she leaves behind: who will fill her shoes?

Capt. Ignatius Carroll, City of Miami Fire: “You see a woman who not only devoted herself in the military but came here to the fire department, determined, moved up the ranks to becoming the first Hispanic district chief fire officer in our department’s history.”

Chief Alvarez hopes to inspire the next generation to dream big.

Yoli Alvarez: “It doesn’t have to be firefighting; it has to be whatever your dreams are. As long as you believe in yourself, you work hard, it can happen.”

Chief Alvarez is planning to spend more time with her family during her retirement.

If there’s someone or something you think we should feature, send us an email at 7spotlight@wsvn.com.

Tonight, 7’s Patrick Fraser continues our living nightmare stories with a look at how rising insurance premiums could force people out of their homes.

Julie and her husband live in Miami, but have built a house that looks like their favorite spot.

Julie Colon: “It’s our key sanctuary. My husband and I love the Keys.”

Marlis Cintra and her family bought their very first home in Hollywood a year and a half ago.

Marlis Cintra: “The first time I came here, and I was like, ‘This is my house. This is the place where I want to live.'”

Laura Newton has been a homeowner in Plantation for the last 21 years.

Laura Newton: “Remodeling inside the house. I redid the kitchen, I redid the living room, all the floors. So I’ve put a lot of money in it. It’s my, like, safe haven when I get out of work.”

Three families living what’s called the American Dream, but the dreamers didn’t plan on an insurance nightmare.

Laura Newton: “I got the bill in the mail and it was $17,400.”

Julie’s bill only increased by a thousand dollars. But she’s retired, on a very tight budget and a thousand is too much.

Julie Colon: “I can’t pay this money. I can’t afford it. My mortgage has gone up every year due to the fact that the property insurance.”

Marlis’ insurance went up another $7,200. To afford it, she had to sell her car and ask her teenage son to get a job.

Marlis Cintra: “He is 17, and I was like, ‘Hey, the mortgage raised, you need you to start working to help us.'”

The solution right now? There isn’t one.

The Florida Legislature passed a bill to try to help, but that won’t have an effect for a year or two, and homeowners need help now.

Chris Frimes/Fitch Ratings: “There are certainly challenges that the insurance market is faced in Florida.”

Fitch Ratings tracks insurance markets around the country. They say the cause of Florida’s soaring rates is clear.

Thousands of lawsuits filed against insurance companies after they refused to pay claims for storm damage.

Now add in false claims and insurance fraud.

The result of all that, many insurance companies went out of business.

And with only a few companies insuring homes in Florida, the cost of re-insurance went up. That’s the insurance that insurance companies buy to cover their losses.

Its a perfect storm of problems creating the current crisis.

Alex Ray/ John Galt Insurance: “That’s the future. You know, who can afford a couple thousand dollars a month increase in your expenses. It’s just, you know, unrealistic.”

Terrible news for homeowners who just can’t afford the insurance and might have to sell.

Marlis Cintra: “I talk to people and everybody’s kind of like, ‘This is too much with insurance. It’s just too much.'”

Its too much, leaving many people thinking like Laura.

Laura Newton: “I’ve thought many times of selling and moving to North Carolina. I definitely won’t retire here, but I’ll probably spend a couple more years here.”

The living nightmare.

She loves her house, but like so many South Floridians can’t afford the insurance for it.

Patrick Fraser, 7News.

Forty-six-year-old Anthony Gonzalez worked as a production engineer, posted about being vegan and as a former college baseball player spent a lot of time at the gym.

Emy Gonzalez, brother: “My brother was the type of person that he was really outgoing, give the shirt off his back. He was an athlete, loved by everybody he worked with, family and friends.”

Anthony’s final post to Facebook was Sept. 13, talking about coming back to Miami Lakes, telling friends, “I just moved back from LA 7 months ago.”

Emy Gonzalez: “What I know about that night was that my brother had found himself in a very dangerous situation.”

That night is Oct. 30, one that brings not only heartache but questions for his family.

Police said Anthony Gonzalez carjacked a woman, sideswiped another driver, then jumped off the Julia Tuttle Causeway, into the water.

Emy Gonzalez: “When they found my brother, he was still alive.”

He would later die at the hospital.

Emy Gonzalez: “My initial thought was that that wasn’t him. My brother will never do that. He will never– he wouldn’t take his life. He will never take his life.”

His brother believes he was actually running for his life.

Emy Gonzalez: “My brother was in fear for his life, whatever situation that he was in, that definitely he thought that was going to cost him his life … frantically waving down passengers in their car, and he was full of blood in his head.”

According to this Miami Police report, a witness told police Anthony Gonzalez had approached him “asking for a ride.”

The man refused because he was “bloodied and seemed to be under the influence.”

Soon after, a woman was stopped in traffic at 79th and Northeast Second Avenue.

That’s when police say Anthony Gonzalez forced her from her car “throwing her to the ground.”

Emy believes his brother took the car out of desperation and fear.

Emy Gonzalez: “He was involved in some type of altercation, maybe. What I think, they tried to rob him. They tried to take his vehicle. They tried to take his money, whatever it was, you know. But that’s not normal to have somebody in the middle of the street waving on cars full of blood.”

His car, keys, wallet and cell phone were all missing

Then they noticed something odd after he died, his car was racking up tolls on Sunpass.

Emy Gonzalez: “I went into the area where the initial incident took place, and I was able to locate his car within 20 minutes … the car passed right by me.”

He immediately called police and the car was impounded.

Now detectives are investigating.

Anthony Gonzalez was driving a 2016 white Nissan Altima. If you saw something near 79th Street and Northeast Second Avenue the night of Oct. 30, please call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. For one family, one call could make the difference.

CONTACT 7 INVESTIGATES:
305-627-CLUE
954-921-CLUE
7Investigates@wsvn.com

There have been concerns for years about how the Broward Animal Care Shelter has been run, but now it is police officers who are fed up and frustrated.

Every day, police officers risk their lives to keep South Florida residents safe, but now they are also being forced to take on the role of keeping animals safe.

Anabelle Lima-Taub, Hallandale Beach Commissioner: “I have never seen anything like this, ever.”

Hallandale Beach City commissioners got this letter from a police captain. He writes he found it “…very disturbing…” when animal services refused to respond to help a “mortally injured dog with wounds infested with flies and maggots.”

Anabelle Lima-Taub: “The police department isn’t equipped to be an animal care facility. That’s what our tax dollars are allocated for Broward Animal Care Shelter.”

Officers say the Broward County Animal Shelter also refused to pick up this stray dog. Hallandale Beach Police placed her in a makeshift outdoor pen, but moved her into a city jail cell when she started to overheat.

Karen Hensel: “Is a crate outside a holding facility?”

Emily Woods, Animal Care Director: “That is for the city to decide.”

And Hallandale is not alone.

Davie Police officers were forced to jump in and rescue a drowning dog from this canal.

They too were denied help from the shelter.

One officer wrote in an email, “When I asked if the officers should have left the dog to drown in the canal last night, she stated it was a choice they made and yes, they should have left it, if they did not have other accommodations….”

The officer ended by saying, “I’m still in shock…I have no words.”

We took the issue directly to shelter director Emily Wood.

Emily Wood, director, Broward County Animal Care: “I certainly did not say that.”

Karen Hensel: “The officer’s lying?”

Emily Wood: “I think maybe it’s a little bit of an exaggeration of a heated conversation.”

According to auditors investigating a slew of problems at the shelter, the trouble began when Wood updated intake practices requiring local police to hold pets for 72 hours.

Emily Wood: “This animal, who is only a few blocks from their home, is much less likely to get home if they come here, and they’re taking these resources that another animal might really need.”

Problem is investigators say Wood never told city officials about the 3-day rule.

Ana Campos, Animal Activist: “It’s an ongoing situation with police officers being put in this position. I’m very upset.”

The parents of this yorkie are also upset. Their precious pet was mauled to death by a loose pitbull last Thursday night.

Their 12-year-old daughter was walking the dog when the attack occurred.

Hallandale Beach Police say they called animal services repeatedly, but the dangerous dog wasn’t picked up until four days later.

Michele Lazaro, Hallandale Beach Commissioner: “If the county’s not going to hold her accountable, we’re going to make sure that she’s accountable.”

Hallandale Commissioner Michele Lazaro spoke at a county commission meeting saying the policy is ridiculous.

Michele Lazaro, Hallandale Beach Commissioner: “The police department are not doing Ms. Wood’s job. It’s not happening.”

One Broward City has now passed a resolution calling for the county commission to do away with the new policy.

Other cities are expected to follow suit.

Karen Hensel, 7News.

CONTACT 7 INVESTIGATES:
305-627-CLUE
954-921-CLUE
7Investigates@wsvn.com

This is home security video of Officer Matthew Barbieri in March of 2017, obtained exclusively by 7 Investigates.

Gary Jeffries, Hollywood resident: “Barbieri grabs the door, whips it open, reaches and grabs me by the wrist and dragged me outside and body slams me right on the ground, right down as hard as he could. And then he jumps on top of me and puts his knee right in my back and my lumbar and the other knee and my neck choking me. And I’m screaming in pain. And I’m saying, I’ve had back surgery and neck surgery. “

Sixty-nine-year-old Gary Jeffries showed us the X-rays of plates and screws from a previous injury.

Gary Jeffries: “That’s the plate that’s in my back where his knee was, right here crushing.”

Jeffries says that day, he got into a fender bender.

Gary Jeffries: “I said, ‘Well, I just live eight houses down. Let me go get my checkbook, and I’ll pay to repair the car.'”

Moments later, Hollywood Police Officer Matthew Barbieri and a female officer showed up.

Six home security cameras and Jeffries’ friend witnessed their arrival.

Gary Jeffries: “I heard banging on the window. Doorbell didn’t ring or anything.”

His dogs, an 11-pound Jack Russell terrier and a Labrador, started barking.

In a sworn deposition, the friend, Tom Brady, testified that Officer Barbieri “…said something about shooting the dogs…” so Brady went in and put them in the backyard.

Gary Jeffries: “Anybody that’s going to kick down your door and shoot a dog, you don’t know what’s in their frame of mind, so I was scared to death.”

Moments later, Barbieri grabbed Jeffries through the front door.

Jeffries contacted 7 Investigates after seeing the following story on 7News.

Barbieri was acquitted just last week of misdemeanor battery. He was charged after being caught on camera slapping a handcuffed suspect.

Jeffries says in his case, not only was he mistreated, but the officers lied about what happened.

In the police report, the officer wrote “… he shortly thereafter came outside …”

Gary Jeffries: “It’s a total lie. The video proves that I did not do that.”

Video also shows him handcuffed, then taken to the sidewalk, where a camera view is not as clear.

Gary Jeffries: “He parks me out there on my butt. I lay down on my back, and he goes, ‘Sit up, [expletive language].’ And I said, ‘I can’t sit up at a 90-degree angle. It hurts. And he started kicking my feet and kicking my legs.”

His friend witnessed the kicks, saying in his deposition, Jeffries was “moaning … almost crying …”

Jeffries says, when they got him up to put him in the police car, he was roughed up again.

Gary Jeffries: “He goes to push me, and right at the last second gives me a good jab right in the belly. He slams my face right into the car and knocked out all my top upper and lower, except my two front teeth.”

His teeth in this baggy are now evidence in a lawsuit, which claims the officer “illegally entered” Gary’s home …” and prepared “… a false, untruthful and fraudulent …” police report.

Including this statement that Jeffries was “…under the influence,” yet he says he never took a breathalyzer or blood test when they took him to the hospital for his injuries.

Greg Durden, attorney: “He has no priors at all. He’s a model citizen, and if this can happen to somebody like Gary, it can happen to anybody.”

Jeffries was arrested for hit-and-run DUI.

The charges were later dismissed.

He gave Hollywood Police a copy of the video but was told…

Gary Jeffries: “We did not find anything wrong in the arrest.”

Gary says it has taken a physical and emotional toll, and he is worse off now than he was before the arrest.

Hollywood Police declined to comment on this lawsuit.

Karen Hensel, 7News.

CONTACT 7INVESTIGATES:
305-627-CLUE
954-921-CLUE
7Investigates@wsvn.com

August 24, 1992, 5 a.m.

7Weather meteorologist: “We have the core of the hurricane coming in here. It’s well-formed, and it’s going to cause significant damage.

“Significant damage.” Who knew what an understatement that would turn out to be.

Ken Tolliver: “It’s really, really picking up here on Collins and about 82.”

Andrew was supposed to hit Miami Beach, but it took a dip and landed in South Dade.

Patrick Fraser: “The trucks almost tipped over. We’re coming down.”

Alice Jacobs: “At this point, guys, that’s the best we can hope for. We don’t want anybody to get hurt here.”

If you were in the path of Andrew, you probably weren’t concerned with getting hurt. You were worried you were going to die.

Man: “You can feel this whole wall moving that I’ve got my shoulder against.”

Older woman: “I started to scream, ‘God, please, don’t kill me, God, don’t kill me, please.”

Andrew’s 140 mph winds, combined with hundreds of tornadoes, destroyed everything.

As the sun came up, I will never forget the sight. No one who was there during and after Andrew ever will.

First responder: “I was a combat medic in Vietnam, and the devastation does not compare with the devastation here.”

Homes leveled, cars smashed. It sounds strange to say, but if you just lost a roof, you were considered lucky.

Arlene Rodriguez: “The roof came off, and all of us were screaming in the room.”

Many people were forced to run from room to room as their homes blew up around them.

Man: “The rumbling, the shaking.”

Woman: “He dug me out of the rubble twice and put me where I needed to go.”

Older woman: “I said, ‘The daylight’s coming, please. I wanted the daylight, I wanted the daylight.'”

But all the daylight did was shine a light on the destruction … and make it clear the nightmare had only begun.

Man: “There’s nothing. There’s nothing left. There’s no more Homestead. I don’t think there’s a building I’ve seen that hasn’t been destroyed.”

The storm of the century killed 44 people, destroyed 170,000 homes. Think about it: 170,000 houses and trailers, gone, leaving 250,000 people without a place to live.

Girl: “I wish it wouldn’t have happened.”

And it got worse. No food, no water, no help.

Man: “It’s survival of the fittest. Every man and woman for themselves.”

Finally, Kate Hale, then the head of Dade County’s Emergency Operations Center, challenged the country and spoke out in frustration.

Kate Hale, Dade County emergency manager: “Where in the hell is the calvary on this one?”

And the help started arriving.

President George Bush landed in a field near what was left of Homestead to see the National Guard go to work.

Tents gave families a place to sleep at night.

Woman: “It’s better than anywhere. We have light here; we have everything.”

Supplies poured in. Trucks, helicopters bringing water and food for more than 100,000 people.

Parents stood in line to get food for their babies and then slept in tents with hundreds of others, one eye open to make sure their children were safe.

Woman: “Can you move back in your house?”

Girl: “Nope.”

Many people gave up, got their insurance money, loaded up a truck and took off, never to return again.

But Homestead did recover, not in weeks or months; it took years. Today, the city is bigger and better, with no sign of that horrible storm.

Unless you search people’s memories.

Man: “A lot of work, a lot of dreams into this, all gone overnight, just in two hours.”

Woman: “Words can’t explain it. You have to go through it yourself.”

Patrick Fraser, 7News.

Residents were left digging through the rubble of their homes after andrew ravaged south dade. They desperately searched for any remnants of their lives.

Entire neighborhoods were destroyed. There was no shelter, no food, no water and no help on the way.

All of the suffering prompted the Emergency Management Director Kate Hale to send out a desperate national call .

Kate Hale: “Where in the hell is the calvary?”

Only then did help arrive.

People stood in line for hours for food, water, clothing and other basic necessities.

National Guard soldier: “We’ve got to get the people who need food fed.”

Andrew showed us how catastrophic hurricanes can be, and it should remind us why preparing for a storm is so important.

Pete Gomez, Miami-Dade EOC director: “Well, number one is we live in hurricane alley. There is a very good chance that we’re going to be affected by some kind of weather event, specifically hurricanes.”

Pete Gomez is the new director for Miami-Dade’s Emergency Operations Center.

He says people need to shop for supplies that can keep their family safe after a storm.

Pete Gomez: “Part of that is understanding that government or somebody is not going to be able to help you for a period of time. Right, so we ask you to be self-sufficient for a period of three to seven days.”

Your kit should include plenty of food and water, ice to keep food at a safe temperature. You should also have emergency tarps and hardware to make repairs if your home is damaged.

But, Gomez says, the government is working behind the scenes to get emergency help to you as soon as possible after a storm hits.

Pete Gomez: “We’ve made a lot of improvements in our processes, not only at the local and state level, but at the federal level, but we still want you to be taking care of in case we can’t get to you yet.”

Gomez says part of that process includes emergency supplies being readied before the hurricane hits.

Pete Gomez: “The federal government will pre-stage them in certain locations away from the storm so that soon as the storm passes, they’re able to get all those supplies in there.”

But, to be on the safe side, buy your supplies, make a plan and follow it if a storm heads our way.

A full list of critical supplies you’ll want to stock up on can be found by clicking here.

Two days before Andrew slammed into Southern Miami-Dade County, people along 443 miles of Florida’s East Coast were warned to be ready for the monster storm.

7News, 1992: “As we take a look at the hurricane watch, it does extend from the Dry Tortugas to Titusville.”

A huge area but, back then, scientists didn’t have the tools to better predict where Andrew would hit.

Dr. Jack Bevin, Senior Storm Specialist, National Hurricane Center: “In 1992, we were only making three-day forecasts.”

Check this out, back in 1992, this was the predicted three-day track for a hurricane.

It’s a large area, and scientists could only say the storm would hit somewhere in here.

If they would have used the cone of concern, it would have looked something like this.

Now, compare that to today, this little circle represents where the cone would be focused three days out from a storm making landfall.

This tighter cone is the result of new technology that gives forecasters a better understanding of how hurricanes work.

Here’s another example of how far forecasting has come.

This is the track scientists can currently study when a storm is three days away from landfall, and this is technology they had when Andrew was one day away from landfall in 1992, which means we now know days earlier where a storm is going to hit.

And that means people are now getting earlier and better warnings so they can prepare.

Dr. Jack Bevin: “Now we are issuing watches 48 hours in advance and warnings 36 hours in advance as compared to back in 1992.”

Dr. Jack Bevin is now a senior storm specialist for the NHC.

He was just an intern during Andrew.

Dr. Jack Bevin: “I was getting my Ph.D. at Florida State and doing intern work at the Hurricane Center.”

He has been on the front lines to see all of the changes, which have led to better and more accurate forecasts today.

Dr. Jack Bevin: “We got these new fancier dropsondes in, start throwing them out into the strongest part of the hurricane eyewall and made some very interesting discoveries about how the hurricane worked.”

But when Andrew hit, scientists could only measure wind speed at 10,000 feet above ground.

Now ,the dropsondes allow them to check wind speed in the actual eye of the storm.

Hurricane Hunter Pineda: “This is the transmitter right here that sends all the data back to the aircraft.”

Another big advancement: weather satellites that can take pictures above a hurricane every 30 seconds.

Dr. Jack Bevin: “You put it all together, we have improved our capabilities a lot, of monitoring the storm, tracking the storm and forecasting the storm.”

The Hurricane Center is now actively working on seven day forecasts. We don’t know yet when those will start being issued.

Kristina Sharpe lives in this North Bay Village condo, Treasures On The Bay. She loves the water view from her seventh floor balcony.

Kristina Sharpe: “I’ve been here since 2017. I’ve been here for, it’s going to be my fifth year.”

But she says this balcony fire in February, started by one of her neighbors, ignited trouble for residents.

Kristina Sharpe: “There was a fire this year from someone’s barbecue on my floor, which ended up messing up the service elevator.”

The fire also took out one of the two passenger elevators. She showed us how five months later, elevators are still not working, so when her rent was raised another $400 a month to $2,035, she decided to move out, but she couldn’t.

Kristina Sharpe: “The service elevator is the way we could only get my furniture down seven flights of stairs, so I was forced to sign because how am I going to get out of here?”

Tenant: “I can’t move my things out. We are held hostage here.”

Other neighbors agree, like this man who wanted to remain anonymous.

Karen Hensel: “Do you feel like this is a safety issue?”

Tenant: “It’s a big time safety issue. You only have one elevator working, and that’s about to break soon, because what happens is people start to overload that elevator.”

That’s why Kristina says she often just takes the seven flights of stairs.

Kristina Sharpe: “My neighbors have gotten stuck in it like numerous times, and they’re literally afraid to go in the elevator. I one time saw on the Citizen app, my neighbor was stuck in the elevator for an hour with his dog, and you know, I will not go in the elevator without a phone because of that.”

And if she does take the elevator, Kristina says she has to plan for delays.

Kristina Sharpe: “It takes so long just to get on the elevator. You have to leave about 15 minutes earlier, because then you stop on almost every floor going down.”

Miami-Dade County records show all three elevators failed the annual inspection last August. County records also show the violations have still not been corrected. The company was cited and fined $780. A follow-up inspection is scheduled for later this month.

Kristina Sharpe: “I just hope that the association, everybody will do something about it. You know, that’s what I hope.”

And that may happen. We contacted the New York company that owns the building. No one there would comment, but when we asked North Bay Village officials, they sent out code enforcement the very same day.

They spoke with the property manager who promised that both elevators would be fixed within weeks. Code enforcement says they will be back to ensure the repairs are made.

Karen Hensel, 7News.

CONTACT 7INVESTIGATES:
305-627-CLUE
954-921-CLUE
7Investigates@wsvn.com

Harry Appel, sued insurance company: “I was in shock because I couldn’t believe that there was nothing left of a concrete house.”

Harry and Jennifer Appel’s home and their bed and breakfast were completely destroyed when Hurricane Irma hit Big Pine Key.

Jennifer Appel, sued insurance company: “I knew we had insurance, and I thought we had good policies.”

They had flood and windstorm, their flood carrier paid the full claim right away. Windstorm…

Jennifer Appel: “They just ghosted us.”

The Appels spent months emailing and calling trying to get their carrier to look at their claim. They had no choice but to file a lawsuit.

Jennifer Appel: “You’re desperate, right? You are just, you don’t have a place to live. You don’t — you know — your business is closed for two years, your house is gone, and they’re just jerking around.”

And they are not alone. Litigation over insurance payments is big business in Florida.

The Office of Insurance Regulation says while we account for only 8% of homeowners claims in the nation, Florida has 76% of the property insurance lawsuits.

Dr. Charles Nyce, FSU: “There is a huge cost of fraud in Florida right now in property insurance.”

Insurance expert, Dr. Charles Nyce of Florida State University says the cost of lawsuits and fraud for insurance carriers is not sustainable.

Dr. Charles Nyce: “We’ve had an extremely fragile property insurance market, and now what we’re seeing is that these companies are going bankrupt. We’ve lost four companies so far this year, in 2022. That is on top of the eight or nine companies now that have said they’re going to stop writing new policies in the state of Florida.”

And suing insurance companies is big business. State-owned citizens has spent nearly $406 million on legal fees since Hurricane Irma in 2017.

Other insurers say their numbers are about the same, which is why rates are going up.

Stacey Giulianti from Florida Peninsula: “Eighty percent of it is the cost of litigation that, in the last eight years, insurance companies in the state of Florida have paid out $12 billion to the trial lawyers. None of that money went to the consumers.”

Stacey Giulianti is the chief legal officer at Florida Peninsula Insurance Company. He says some lawsuits are warranted but many are just outright fraud.

Stacey Giulianti: “The problem is when a public adjuster, or an attorney, or someone called in a claim a year or two years, three years after the incident, and there’s all this damage, and now we have no way, or a much more difficult way, of trying to prove whether it happened or not.”

And Giulianti says, under Florida law, attorneys are guaranteed a paycheck because the insurance company has to pay their bill as long as they recover something on behalf of their clients.

Stacey Giulianti: “On one case, it may have been worth $20,000 or $30,000. The attorney’s fees could be over $1,000,000.”

Citizens fought back, it actually sued a Miami law firm for racketeering and won. The firm agreed to pay Citizens a million dollars in a settlement.

The company said the fraud scheme, if left unchecked, could have cost policyholders $16 million a year and that, for the insurance companies, is the bottom line.

Stacey Giulianti: “The amount of costs that are going out, especially in terms of this whole litigation explosion, which is really what’s causing all the problems, is the same economically: a Cat 3 hurricane hitting the state every year.”

Insurers want the legislature to throw out the law that guarantees lawyers get paid even if they lose.

Stacey Giulianti: “It’s been widely abused, and until that changes, the cost is going to continue to rise.”

But Dr. Nyce says that’s not likely to happen.

Dr. Charles Nyce: “You know, consumers have to have legal recourse, and it should not be something that’s prohibitively expensive for those consumers to kind of pursue.”

As for the Appels, it took two engineers, several adjusters and an attorney to get their insurance to pay.

Harry Appel: “So it ends up costing them more money. If they would have just paid us in the beginning for a complete disaster, we would have it, wouldn’t have gotten to that point.”

The legislature plans to tackle the insurance issues during the week, along with roofing problems. Currently, there is legislation that would say that if your roof is under 15 years old, an insurance company would not be able to deny you if the roof is in decent shape, and if your roof is over 15 years old, you are still able to get coverage if an inspector finds there are still five good years of life, then you will still be able to be insured.

The Senate has passed that along to a committee, and the House is set to gavel it into their meeting Tuesday morning.

COVID hit Duvean hard, and she needed to refinance her house to save it.

Duvean Bouie: “I went through my mortgage company.”

That’s when a hidden secret from her childhood was finally revealed.

Duvean Bouie: “They contacted me and told me that I was denied, and I said, ‘Why?’ They said, ‘You have a lien,’ so now I’m thinking, ‘Where is this lien from?'”

The claim of lien document was filed in court under Duvean’s and her mother’s name in 1981, when Duvean was 13 years old.

Duvean Bouie: “This is astonishing.”

It was filed 40 years ago by the Jackson Health Public Trust after her mother didn’t pay a $353 hospital bill.

That wasn’t all Duvean discovered.

Duvean Bouie: “I came up with my brother — he was 9 years old — and they put a lien on him.”

Patrick Fraser: “At 9?”

Duvean Bouie: “At 9.”

A lien still in effect today.

Duvean Bouie: “Hey, I was 13 years old, and I’ve had a lien for 40 years.”

Then we started digging. One child after another in the ’70’s, ’80’s and ’90’s were listed on liens placed by the public trust after their parents didn’t pay a Jackson Hospital bill.

Gail Love: “Absurd, really absurd.”

Liens that their parents were in the dark about.

Gail Love: “Really, I’m confused ’cause this is just all mind-blowing to me. I didn’t know anything about this.”

Gail’s son Antwon was one one year old when the public trust put his name on the lien document.

Gail Love: “But you’re talking about a minor, 1-year-old? How can he pay a bill? He can’t even hold a bottle or walk.”

Is it legal to do this to a child?

Howard Finkelstein, 7News legal expert: “No, it is not legal to place a lien on a child, but it is legal for a hospital to file a lien like this to try to collect for unpaid bills. In these cases, even though it appears the child has a lien, they are in reality only listed as an interested party, but you have to actually look at the court documents to realize this, and credit agencies don’t often do this and think it’s a lien against the child.”

Duvean and Antwon say it’s now clear to them, when they applied for a loan or credit card, the lenders saw their name on the lien document and denied them.

Antwon Jennings: “Now that I think about it. Now that I think about it…”

Gail Love: “Paid more, had difficulty achieving credit. I didn’t understand why; I just thought it was the process.”

A lien can destroy your credit. It blocks you from getting bank loans or credit cards or makes you pay higher interest rates.

That thought sent Duvean from surprised to simmering.

Duvean Bouie: “You just don’t know how bad it has hurt us, interest rate, being denied for things that we shouldn’t have been denied for.”

A spokesperson for JMH told us they filed the liens to collect if the patient received money from an insurance company regarding the injuries they were treated for.

She added, “Even though the patient, regardless of their age, may be listed, the lien attaches to an injury case settlement or insurance only. The hospital lien will not affect a patient’s property or credit, and the hospital will not collect from the patient while the settlement is pending. If the case is never settled, the lien automatically goes away after 20 years.”

But Duvean says the lien never went away.

Duvean Bouie: “Everything I applied for, everything that I’ve tried to do in life, you guys made it harder for me. Now you could have made me almost lose my home.”

The Jackson Public Trust released the 40-year-old lien on Duvean, and she was able to refinance and keep her house. We asked them to make sure the lien on Antwon is released as well.

A lien for decades is long enough.

We pay a premium to live where we can feel the ocean breeze and hear waves crashing outside our doors, but building next to salty water and air comes with a price.

Kevin Ozebek: “Are our buildings in South Florida more vulnerable to corrosion?”

Atorod Azizinamini, FIU engineering professor: “Yes, yes, it’s more vulnerable.”

Florida International University’s Atorod Azizinamini and Florida Atlantic University’s Francisco Presuel-Moreno are two engineers focused on fighting corrosion.

Francisco Presuel-Moreno, FAU engineering professor: “We have samples that have been here since the 1990s.”

Outside Francisco’s Dania Beach lab, he has dozens of concrete and rebar samples just sitting here.

Over time, you can see how ocean air and water takes its toll. Once salt and moisture make their way through the porous concrete and reach the rebar, corrosion starts.

Francisco Presuel-Moreno: “The rebars have corroded in such a way the concrete has separated.”

The corroding rebar produces chemicals that then degrade the concrete and cause it to crack.

Most rebar is made of carbonate steel, but Francisco’s experiments show there are better options.

Francisco Presuel-Moreno: “Stainless steel on the top, carbonate steel on the bottom.”

Kevin Ozebek: “Now that is a striking difference here.”

Francisco Presuel-Moreno: “That’s correct, yes.”

Unfortunately, stainless steel rebar is five times the price, though Francisco says concrete mixed with as little water as possible also significantly delays corrosion.

Francisco Presuel-Moreno: “If you have good concrete, and you have a thick concrete cover, you can get structures that last 75 to 100 years before corrosion initiates.”

Atorod Azizinamini: “It’s the most unique way of trying to detect the corrosion.”

At FIU’s College of Engineering, Atorod is perfecting a device that analyzes magnetic fields. It can detect corroding rebar inside concrete.

Atorod Azizinamini: “When you have lost steel, your magnetic field is going to change.”

But to fend off corrosion in the first place, Atorod is studying this.

Kevin Ozebek: “It feels nothing like traditional concrete?”

Atorod Azizinamini: “No, it doesn’t.”

This “super concrete” is mixed with little water, and it is loaded with fine strands of steel.

Kevin Ozebek: “This adds tremendous strength to the concrete?”

Atorod Azizinamini: “It allows the concrete to bend it without breaking it.”

This “super concrete” is also far less porous, so salt cannot easily penetrate it.

Atorod Azizinamini: “We have used it in the bridge industry, but for whatever reason, it hasn’t found its way in the building industry.”

It’s double the price of standard concrete, but Atorod says you need far less of it.

Atorod Azizinamini: “Using this type of material, we can retrofit the building, and the building could be better than the original condition.”

Also, it could be used to construct just parts of a building, like the foundation and balconies, because after witnessing the tragedy in Surfside, building better has never been more important.

Atorod Azizinamini: “We need to take a look at our building codes and all our practices and make changes.”

Both engineers say they would like to see buildings in South Florida inspected more often, and they say, if you notice a crack in your building, do not hesitate to call in an engineer who specializes in spotting corrosion.

CONTACT 7INVESTIGATES:
305-627-CLUE
954-921-CLUE
clue@wsvn.com

It has been seven months since Alberto Diaz was in the fight for his life.

Alberto Diaz: “I collapsed in the door of the hospital.”

Alberto went to the emergency room at Mount Sinai Medical center on July 3.

He had coronavirus and spent the next month in the ICU.

Alberto Diaz: “I could not move in the bed because if I moved in the bed, the oxygen would go down.”

Dr. Seth Gottlieb, Mount Sinai Medical Center: “He was very bad. His oxygen levels were low, and without the supplemental oxygen that we had, as much as we could push it through his nose and around his face, he would not have survived. He was very bad.”

Dr. Seth Gottlieb showed us two sets of X-rays.

The dark lungs on the right are normal.

Alberto’s lungs are on the left. The white cloudiness shows the damage left by COVID.

Dr. Seth Gottlieb: “We have fluid and proteins and perhaps blood that have filled the airways and fill the air sacs, and that’s why you had this haziness in the lungs.”

It took two months in the hospital for Alberto to beat COVID, but the virus left him with severe scarring in his lungs.

Dr. Seth Gottlieb: “Once you get to that point where the lungs are scarred, many times it doesn’t go away. It can leave you with permanent deficits.”

Alberto never smoked and despite being diabetic, was generally in good health, but to this day, he still needs oxygen.

Alberto Diaz: “My lung is enough to sit down here and talk to you, but if I walk back to the street I begin to…”

Alberto is not the only patient struggling. Doctors from across South Florida are treating COVID patients suffering from COVID’s long lasting effects.

Dr. Jose Suarez, Westchester General Hospital: “So, they’re recovering from the disease, and they still have findings for weeks, for months, so we called those post-COVID syndrome and long haulers.”

Dr. Jose Suarez of Westchester Hospital says long hauler patients can experience everything from hair loss to the worst symptom: lung problems.

Dr. Jose Suarez: “It looks actually worse than smoker’s lungs on some patients. It has to do with the scarring that they are developing, and it’s not just the lungs, but we’re finding it in other organs — kidneys, livers.”

But there is hope. Westchester is among a few hospitals around the world studying a new drug.

Dr. Jose Suarez: “So we’re doing a trial with Algernon, a medication called Ifenprodil, which has been around since the ’70s, and we’re starting to use it on COVID patients, and it’s a potent anti-inflammatory.”

It’s hoped the drug will reduce the scarring of lung tissue which has led to so many long term problems.

Right now, it’s only being used on critically ill patients, and Dr. Suarez says the results are looking good.

Dr. Jose Suarez: “These patients are not getting that scarring that we usually see with the COVID patients, and their reactions to the treatment is phenomenal.”

Dr. Suarez says 10 patients who have received the drug have recovered from COVID without the scarring, and he believes studies like this one provide hope for future COVID patients.

Dr. Jose Suarez: “I do see hope. I am so happy that we now have the vaccine. I am seeing a lot of great, cutting edge medications that are about to come out into the market, which is going to be great.”

Unfortunately, this drug won’t work for Alberto, but he still sees every day as a reason to celebrate.

He says he will continue to fight because from the moment he walked into the hospital, he knew he would win against COVID.

Alberto Diaz: “I never had in my mind that I would have lost my life there. Never. I see a lot of people pass by there, you know?”

Karen Hensel: “That didn’t make it?”

Alberto Diaz: “That didn’t make it. I’m telling you the truth.”

And for him, every breath he takes is a breath of hope for a long life with his family and a full recovery.