Florida International University bridge collapse kills four, crushes cars: officials
Updated
Emergency personnel are drilling holes in debris to search for signs of life after a newly installed pedestrian bridge spanning several lanes of traffic collapsed at Florida International University (FIU), crushing cars and killing four people.
Key points:
- Officials say at least five vehicles were crushed when the bridge collapsed
- The bridge was put into place on the weekend, spanning 53 metres and weighing 860 tonnes
- Television footage showed firefighters were walking across the flattened wreckage
The Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) previously said there were multiple fatalities, and a fire official later said four people had died.
Officials said there were eight vehicles crushed underneath the pedestrian crosswalk, and nine people were taken to hospital.
The bridge connects the university with the city of Sweetwater and was installed on Saturday in six hours over the eight-lane highway, according to a story that was posted on the university's website.
The bridge, which cost $18.2 million, was 53 metres long and weighed 860 tonnes.
Two people have been cut from the wreckage
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Division chief Paul Estopinan said there reports of workers on the bridge before it collapsed, and he confirmed that emergency workers did make some "surface rescues".
He said two victims were cut out of the wreckage.
Complicating the rescue effort was the uncertainty about the integrity of the bridge, parts of which remained off the ground, much of it inclined, local media reported.
Police had requested television helicopters to leave the area so rescuers could hear for any sounds of people crying for help from beneath the collapsed structure, the Miami TV station said.
Student Aura Martinez was having lunch in a nearby restaurant with her mother when a waitress told her the bridge had collapsed.
She ran outside and helped pull a woman out her car, most of which was flattened by the bridge.
"Her car, it was literally a miracle of God, her car got squished by the bridge from the back, so she was able to get out and she was on the floor and it was just very traumatic," she told the local CBS affiliate.
Florida Governor Rick Scott said an exhaustive investigation of the incident would uncover "why this happened and what happened," and vowed to hold those responsible accountable.
White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said President Donald Trump was aware of the collapse.
"Our brave first responders are working feverishly to save lives," she said at a news briefing.
FIU president Mark Rosenberg said in a statement that he was "heartbroken at the news of the collapse".
"We send our deepest condolences to the victims and their families. We are working with the appropriate agencies to assist in rescue efforts."
MCM, the Miami-based construction management firm which won the bridge contract, said in a statement on Twitter the bridge suffered a "catastrophic collapse causing injuries and loss of life".
The firm took its website down on Thursday, but an archived version of the website featured a news release touting the project.
"This our first Design-Build with FIGG Bridge Engineers, a nationally acclaimed, award-winning firm based out of Tallahassee," the release said.
"FIGG has designed iconic bridges all over the country, including Boston's famous Leonard P Zakim Bridge and Florida's Sunshine Skyway Bridge."
The bridge's construction method was supposed to reduce risks
Local Florida politician Mario Diaz-Balart, who spoke at a ceremony celebrating the bridge's construction over the weekend, told CBS there were going to be a lot of questions that had to be answered about what happened.
"Right now the most important thing is going to be to save people who are hopefully still alive," he said.
The main part of the bridge was assembled by the side of the road and had to be moved into place.
The "accelerated bridge construction" method was supposed to reduce risks to workers and pedestrians and minimise traffic disruption, the university said.
Florida International University is the second-largest university in the state, with 55,000 students.
Most of its students live off-campus and they were on spring break when the collapse happened.
Reuters/AP
Topics: disasters-and-accidents, united-states
First posted
