Pedestrian bridge in construction collapsed at Florida International University on March 15, 2018. causing injuries and damage. The Miami-Dade County fire chief says four people have been found dead in the rubble of a collapsed pedestrian bridge in South Florida.
Fire Chief Dave Downey said at a news briefing Thursday evening that four deceased people had been found at the scene by first responders. He also says nine victims were removed “early on” and taken to hospitals.
“We have multiple victims, the number hasn’t been determined yet,” Miami Dade County Deputy Mayor Maurice Kemp said at a late afternoon news conference. Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Division Chief Paul Estopinan said eight vehicles were trapped under the bridge and eight victims were transported to the hospital. Next news conference, according to the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Department was scheduled approximately for 7:00 p.m. local time.
Shortly after the incident, the company, Munilla Construction Management reacted with posts published to their Facebook page, expressing distress and referring to a loss of life. In a statement published, it said the bridge was “under construction.” The statement, giving information that the bridge was under construction, provoked reactions by residents challenging the way of construction in Miami.
The company promised “thorough investigation,” to find what transpired. Couple of days before this incident, the company announced that on Saturday, March 10, 2018, they “will be positioning a 174-foot section of the Florida International University-Sweetwater University City Bridge.” The company noted as a fun fact the bridge weights 950 tons, “equivalent to approximately 271 elephants.” Hours after the accident, the company had that statement on their Facebook page with residents commenting the incident.
In a statement, Florida International University said they “are shocked and saddened about the tragic events unfolding at the FIU-Sweetwater pedestrian bridge.” FIU explained, “We are still involved in rescue efforts and gathering information.”
The U.S. Department of Transportation, BBC News reports, funded the bridge that costs $14.2 million. It is 174 ft (53m) cable-supported footbridge. As the National Public Radio reports, senior project manager Rodrigo Isaza, from, MCM said, “It is largest pedestrian bridge move via Self-Propelled Modular Transportation in U.S.” MCM collaborated with FIGG Bridge Engineers to design and build the bridge.
Hurricane Irma swerved slightly to the north, Miami Herald published on Sunday, as southeast Florida could devastating winds longer. Miami Herald writes that winds and storm surge could continue in Miami-Dade. There, flooding swept across Brickell Avenue.
Miami-Dade has 43 shelters open for Hurricane Irma — by far, the most in county history — and about 31,000 people are inside them.
The Associated Press reports that, the National Hurricane Center projects 15 to 20 inches (38 to 50 centimeters) of rain with spots up to 25 inches (64 centimeters) for the Florida Keys. Western Florida could get 10 to 15 inches of rain, or 25 to 38 centimeters.
Second crane collapses in Miami, as the Associated Press tweeted on Sunday. Earlier, Torrential rains and strong winds caused a crane to collapse over a building in construction in Miami. One of the employees of the weather service’s in Miami witnessed collapsing crane. It was unknown if the collapse make damage or cause injuries. Construction sites were of concern, but it was not enough time to move the cranes.
Florida authorities said that by Sunday afternoon there were more than 390 shelters open with more than 72,000 people inside.
“This is a life-threatening situation,” Florida Governor Rick Scott said at a news briefing Sunday in Tallahassee, the state’s capital. “The storm is here now.”
At least 25 people in one Florida county have been arrested for violating a curfew imposed as Hurricane Irma approached the state. Palm Beach County authorities say the arrest were made after a 3 p.m. Saturday curfew was imposed. The misdemeanor charge can carry a fine of up to $500 and potentially 60 days in jail.
Irma Headed Southwest Florida Coast
The National Hurricane Center says Category 4 Hurricane Irma is now “headed for the southwest Florida coast” as winds continue to pick up speed in all of South Florida.
The National Weather Service confirmed it had never before issued a tropical-storm warning for Atlanta, where wind gusts could reach 55 mph (88 kph). That’s nothing new to Savannah and the rest of coastal Georgia, which evacuated last October for Hurricane Matthew.
The White House says the U.S. President Donald Trump spoke with the officials Sunday from the Camp David presidential retreat, where he was spending the weekend.
Trump has been in regular contract with Florida Gov. Rick Scott and Sen. Marco Rubio over the past week. Chief of staff John Kelly spoke Sunday with Florida Sen. Bill Nelson.
Emergencies were declared in Georgia and the Carolinas. President Trump received a briefing on Sunday and spoke with governors of Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee, the White House said. Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee could be affected by the storm, which struck the Florida Keys on Sunday.
The National Weather Service has issued a tornado watch for all of southern Florida and the Florida Keys.
Hurricane Irma began its landfall at daybreak on Sunday after the northern eyewall reaches the lower Florida Keys. It started its assault as Category 4 storm and hit the area with winds near 130 mph.
As Irma approached Florida, conditions deteriorate as hurricane brought heavy rain and furious winds. National Hurricane Center expects Irma to remain a powerful storm and to move from the east coast to the west coast.
The Key West International Airport measured winds of 50 mph with a gust of up to 70 mph. With mammoth size and storm surge as high as 15 feet (4,5 meters) this could be most devastating hurricane to hit Florida since Hurricane Andrew that hit South Florida, killing 43 and causing $30.5 billion in damage.
About 423.000 electric customers are without electricity as heavy rains and wind are causing damages.
Hurricane trajectory changed and many evacuate in last minute, as severe weather risk put residents of St. Petersburg in danger.
“For five days, we were told it was going to be on the east coast, and then 24 hours before it hits, we’re now told it’s coming up the west coast,” said Jeff Beerbohm, a 52-year-old entrepreneur in St. Petersburg. “As usual, the weatherman, I don’t know why they’re paid,” Beerbohm said to the Associated Press.
Irma had knocked out power to about 2 million customers by Sunday morning, said Rob Gould, a spokesman for Florida Power and Light. It had restored power to about 320,000 of those customers before noon, leaving 1.7 million without power, he said.
Gould also said there were people impersonating utility employees and then robbing people in their homes at gunpoint, warning customers not to let anyone into their homes without proper identification.
Fire-rescue personnel raced to Little Haiti in response to a call of distress from a woman in labor, according to Miami City Manager Daniel Alfonso, and helped deliver the baby. “Mom and baby are good,” he said.
The storm already has heavily damaged some Caribbean islands, devastating Barbuda and tearing across Anguilla. Michael Joseph, president of the Red Cross in Antigua and Barbuda, said Barbuda is “uninhabitable” and in a “total blackout” with almost all of its infrastructure destroyed.
As Irma nears the west coast, it’s expected to weaken as it brushes up against land and faces stronger wind shear. At 24 hours, forecasters expect sustained winds to drop to 90 mph and at 36 hours, fall below tropical storm force at 45 mph.
As of 12:30 PM, @StateDept in coordination with @DeptofDefense has resumed evacuation of U.S. citizens from St. Maarten to Puerto Rico.
It’s still not clear whether Irma will make landfall as it rolls up the Florida coast toward the Panhandle, but a close brush, and even a landfall, is possible near Tampa Bay and St. Petersburg. If it hits, Irma would be the first strike by a major hurricane in 90 years, when the population ballooned from about 10,000 to more than 4 million.
Before heading to Florida, Hurricane Irma caused extensive damage to Cuba.
Aleksandra Dukovska 