‘The phone went dead:’ Man recounts talking to wife during Florida condo collapse

Wife of Democratic political strategist from Colorado among missing

DENVER – The wife of a Democratic political strategist from Colorado is among those missing in the condo building that partially collapsed outside Miami.

Michael Stratton told Denver's KDVR-TV that he was talking on the phone with his wife Cassondra Stratton Thursday around 1:30 a.m. when the building collapsed.

“She described that the building was shaking and then…the phone went dead,” said Stratton, who flew to Florida after learning of the collapse.

In a statement Friday, Stratton thanked rescue workers and also everyone who is keeping his wife in their thoughts and prayers.

"Cassie is a wife, mother and true friend to so many. She brings a vivacious love of life to everything she does — whether as an actress, a model or Pilates instructor,” he said.

According to the website for his law firm, Stratton, who works in both Denver and Washington, has spent decades working with Democrats in Colorado, including the campaigns of Sen. Michael Bennet and former Gov. John Hickenlooper. He also worked in the administrations of former presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton.

Stratton told Denver's KMGH-TV that and his wife spent much of their quarantine during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in the condo, which they have owned for four years.


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