Several Dead, Others Trapped, In Florida Pedestrian Bridge Collapse

(WWJ) - A newly installed pedestrian bridge that connects Florida International University (FIU) with the city of Sweetwater has collapsed onto a busy highway, CBS Miami reports.

Florida Highway Patrol Lt. Alejandro Camacho told CBS News there are "several fatalities" resulting from the collapse, which crushed at least five cars Thursday afternoon. He said the bridge was still under construction and was not open to pedestrians.

At least one person was taken as a trauma alert to the hospital, according to Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, and there are reported of injuries.

Rescue crews are busy at the scene.

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Bridge expert Nabil Grace, Dean of Engineering at Lawrence Technological University, says the company that designed the bridge is FIGG Engineering — which he says is "very well-respected," with many bridges across the country that are standing with high traffic volumes.

So, he told  WWJ Newsradio 950's Zahra Huber, he doubts the collapse was the result of a design issue.

However, Grace said the bridge being assembled using what's known as the "Accelerated Construction Approach," which was introduced recently into the market.

"In the construction approach that has been used, something has been missed, or the acceleration and the quick way of constructing the bridge missed something," he said. "But definitely it's too soon, too early to identify what was the problem."

Get the latest on the bridge collapse CBS Miami, here.