A 21-year-old man whose wife is six months pregnant is among those still missing as authorities continue the grim task of looking for victims in the rubble of two collapsed Manhattan buildings destroyed by a gas leak explosion Wednesday.
Eight people have been confirmed dead in the explosion and collapse that also injured more than 70. Three people remain missing, police said.
The family of Jody Salas is holding out hope he'll be found alive. His father-in-law, Jorge Ortega, says the 21-year-old was last seen Wednesday morning when he returned home from his night job at a Bronx restaurant.
Salas' distraught 20-year-old wife, Jennifer Mendoza, is six months pregnant. Their dog is also missing.
Jorge Amadeo also remains missing. The handyman lived in one of the buuldings that collapsed, and he hasn't been seen since the explosion.
"My thing right now is to find answers and my brother, whether he is alive or not," said brother Mark Wiener.
"Until we know, I have to gasp on that last breath and hope and pray that maybe he is still there," he said.
Four of the dead have been identified as Griselde Camacho, Carmen Tanco, Rosaura Hernandez and Andreas Panagopoulos.
Camacho, 44, was a sergeant with Hunter College's public safety authority and was assigned to the Silberman School of Social Work building, at 119th Street and Third Avenue, according to the school, not far from where she lived on Park Avenue.
Camacho had been employed by Hunter College since 2008. The school says it is planning to hold a memorial for Camacho.
"It was just horrific, and we've talked about it in every single one of our classes," said faculty member Igor Malinovsky.
"She was a wonderful person," he added. "I'm really saddened."
Across the street from where she worked, a deli worker said Camacho always had a smile on her face when came into the store.
"She was always happy, always happy with her job, her friends, her family," he said. "Everybody knew her. The whole block knew her."
The second victim identified in the explosion, Tanco, 67, was in her apartment at the time of the explosion, according to News 12, where one of her cousins works as a cameraman.
News 12 reports that Tanco's family set off on a frantic search when she didn't show up for work Wednesday.
Camacho and Tanco attended the same church, Bethel Gospel Assembly, according to the bishop. Both regularly volunteered their time there, Camacho working in the AV room to project visuals during the bishop's sermons and Tanco as an usher.
Bishop Carlton T. Brown faces the task of breaking news of Camacho's death to her mother, who lived in the same building and is now in the hospital recovering from injuries.
"Mother doesn't even know at this point about her daughter," he said.
Tanco was involved in international mission trips, where she volunteered her dental assistant services, according to associate pastor Gordon Williams. He said people touched by her services overseas have been contacting the church.
"They've called me from overseas because they're stunned that this actually occurred," he said.
Hernandez-Barrios, a 22-year-old restaurant cook from Mexico, was identified by police as the third victim late Wednesday.
Panagopoulos, 43, who was among the four victims pulled from rubble overnight, was identified as a fourth victim Thursday. Friends and family had been searching for the musician since the building collapsed, frantically sending out messages on social media, including one that read: "Please RT if you've seen him in NYC hospitals. Name is Andreas, was in Harlem building that collapsed."
Mexican officials said a Mexican woman, Rosaura Barrios Vazquez, 43, was among those killed.
The identities of the other three victims haven't yet been released.
More than 70 others were hurt in the blast.
--Checkey Beckford, Marc Santia and Chris Glorioso contributed to this report.
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