Pittsburgh, steel bridge collapses: it had been inspected a few months ago. Ten injured, none risking their life

Pittsburgh – The death toll from the collapse of the bridge in Pittsburgh a few hours before US President Joe Biden’s visit to the city to talk about infrastructure is 10 injured, 3 of whom were taken to hospital. He reports it Pittsburgh Fire Department Chief Darryl Jones, adding that none of the injured are in danger of life. Three or four vehicles are involved. From the photos you can see that the bridge and the park over which it passed were covered with snow.

Authorities report that they are using drones to make sure there are no people under any of the collapsed parts of the bridge. Initially it was reported that a gas line had broken and there was a smell of gas in the air, but later the gas supply was cut off. Motorists were asked to avoid the area.

The city-owned steel bridge, built in 1970, passes around 14,500 vehicles per day, according to a 2005 estimate. National Bridge Inventory of the United States Department of Transportation, a September 2019 inspection of the bridge revealed that it was in poor condition. A document on the state Department of Transportation website listed the bridge’s general condition as precarious, which, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, means “deterioration of primary structural elements has advanced.”

Authorities reported today that the last inspection was in September 2021 but that those reports were not currently available. They were requested by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. “It’s a terrible surreal scene,” said the Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania, John Fetterman. “I hope it is a wake-up call to the country that we need to make these investments in infrastructure,” he added.

Update

The White House confirms Joe Biden’s visit to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, after news of the collapse of a two-lane bridge, which took place a few hours before the arrival of the US president precisely to talk about the 1 trillion dollar infrastructure plan , which includes maintenance of the bridges. “Our team is in contact with state and local authorities on the ground as they continue to gather information on the causes of the collapse,” reads the statement, adding that Biden “is grateful to the first responders who ran to the scene to assist motorists who were on the bridge at the time of the collapse. Rescuers abseiled for about 46 meters, while others formed a human chain to try to rescue several people from a bus that was found in the balance following the collapse.