Miami Bridge Collapse Shifts From Rescue To Recovery

MIAMI, FL — First responders have shifted their focus from rescue to recovery one day after a newly constructed pedestrian bridge collapsed outside the main campus of Florida International University. The announcement came at a late-morning press conference amid the somber realization that no additional survivors were likely to be found in the 950 tons of cement and debris that came crashing down along busy SW 8th Street with a sudden boom around 1:30 p.m. on Thursday. Officials also confirmed that an FIU student was among the six people who were killed by the collapse.

At least 10 other people were taken to Kendall Regional Medical Center, including two in critical condition. First responders said that eight vehicles were crushed.

The names of the victims had not yet been released as of Friday afternoon as Miami-Dade police officially opened a homicide investigation. The probe is one of several parallel state, local and federal investigations into the incident. Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board arrived on Thursday night and opened their investigation into what caused the $14.2 million structure to fail.

"Our primary focus is to remove all of the cars and all of the victims in a dignified manner and not compromise the investigation in the process," explained Deputy Miami-Dade Mayor Maurice Kemp. "The investigation is vital because we want to ensure that this type of accident doesn’t happen again locally, or anywhere in this country."

The bridge collapse has resulted in a new traffic pattern for the busy area:

The 174-foot main span of the bridge was lifted from its temporary supports, rotated 90 degrees across an eight-lane road and lowered into its permanent position "in a matter of hours" on Saturday. The bridge was intended to improve safety for the thousands of students who cross into the campus from the city of Sweetwater each day.

Miami-Dade Police Director Juan Perez said that first responders made the transition from rescue to recovery around 10 p.m. on Thursday. He cautioned that the investigation may not necessarily lead to any criminal charges. Police chaplains were also on the scene to provide support to the families of victims.

"This is a homicide investigation. That’s all it is. That means that somebody died," Perez cautioned. "It does not mean that there is criminal charges looming or pending or anything like that."

Asked who was responsible for allowing traffic to travel under the bridge while it was still under construction, Perez said that will be addressed in the official investigation.

"We’re going to have to start from the beginning of contract all the way to the end — to the incident happened — to find out all the details," Perez said.

Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio, who also serves as an adjunct professor at FIU, said that cables that suspend the bridge had loosened prior to its collapse.

"The engineering firm ordered that they be tightened," Rubio tweeted on Thursday night. "They were being tightened when it collapsed today."

With a student body of nearly 54,000, FIU is one of the 10 largest universities in the United States and the second largest in Florida. The tragedy came as the university had been celebrating the new bridge as an important milestone.

"We exhausted last night all of our search and rescue capabilities in the hopes of finding additional survivors," declared Miami-Dade Fire Chief Dave Downey. "We used auditory. We used visual. We used our canines and we determined that there is no longer any survivors. That’s why we transitioned into this recovery mode."

Robert Sumwalt, who chairs the NTSB said that his 15-person team would be at the scene for five to seven days.

"The people of South Florida have been through a lot obviously over the last several weeks and this is just yet one more tragedy to add to that sad book," said Sumwalt, whose team includes experts in civil engineering, material science and specialist in transportation disaster assistance.

"We did a general walk through last evening but until we get full access after the recovery operation is completed, we have not had a chance to get out and really start getting what I call, 'getting an up close and personal look'," according to Sumwalt.

FIU President Mark B. Rosenberg told reporters that the bridge contract was handled like all other construction project at the university using certified contractors in a transparent, competitive bid process. The project designer is Figg Engineering and the contractor who built and installed the structure was MCM. The construction engineering and inspection service was provided by Bolton Perez and Associates.

"This is an unprecedented event – no other bridge designed by FIGG Bridge Engineers has ever experienced such a collapse," explained a spokesperson for the firm. "FIGG-designed bridges have proven to be incredibly durable. For example, we have worked on more than 230 bridges throughout the United States and have designed nearly 35 miles of bridges in the southeastern Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico that have withstood multiple hurricanes."

The pedestrian bridge was to connect FIU with the city of Sweetwater and was partially funded by an $11.4 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Transportation in 2013.

Florida Democrat Sen. Bill Nelson said he has asked transportation officials to turn over all records related to the engineering, design, construction, safety and inspection of the bridge project.

“In light of the fact that there were multiple agencies and companies involved, we’re going to need a clear understanding of who had what role in this horrible tragedy,” Nelson wrote in his letter to Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao. “There should have been adequate and appropriate oversight on the ground. If anyone dropped the ball and it contributed to this tragedy, then they should be held accountable.”

Anyone with information regarding the bridge collapse should call Miami-Dade homicide investigators at 305-471-2421 or 305-471-2400. Videos should be sent to mdpdfvu@gmail.com. In addition, the National Transportation Safety Board is asking that anyone who witnessed the collapse as it happened to contact the agency via email at witness@ntsb.gov.

The following traffic changes are in effect:

• SW 8th Street will remain closed indefinitely between SW 107 Avenue and SW 117 Avenue.
• Access to Florida International University and the Youth Fair is available from SW 24 Street (Coral Way) or SW 107 and 117 Avenue.

Watch Friday's press conference.

Photo courtesy Miami-Dade Fire Rescue