Safety Board to Determine Cause of FIU Bridge Collapse

Taken on Thursday, March 15 minutes after bridge collapse. Photo courtesy of Rachel Miks

By: Joshua Ceballos/Investigative Editor

 

The National Transportation Safety Board will finally reveal the results of their ongoing investigation into the fatal FIU bridge collapse at a press conference tomorrow morning.

On Tuesday, Oct. 22 at 9:30 a.m., the NTSB will broadcast a board meeting where it will determine the probable cause of the pedestrian bridge collapse on March 15, 2018 that killed six people, including FIU student Alexa Duran.

The meeting comes after 19 months of investigation by the NTSB into who was at fault for the project’s ultimate demise.

Last week, the board released over 6,000 pages of documents from their investigation including interview transcripts, emails and statements from the parties involved including FIU, FIGG Engineering Group, Munilla Construction Management, and the Florida Department of Transportation. The meeting’s discussion will likely draw on these documents in its determination of fault.

PantherNOW found from these documents that one of the engineering companies contracted to review the bridge design before it was constructed  was not qualified by the State to even perform such a task, calling into question the legitimacy of the entire peer review process.

The meeting will hopefully shed light on lingering questions regarding the bridge and some of the questionable decisions made during its construction.

One big unknown is why Tamiami Trail was never closed while the bridge was put up and construction crews were still getting it ready. 

In a letter to the NTSB, Chief Engineer for FDOT Will Watts claimed that FIU and its contractor were responsible for closing the road but never did.

FIU External Relations has declined to comment on the bridge, citing pending litigation and the upcoming NTSB decision.

Figure 1. Location: Diaphragm II, west side directly adjacent to vertical member 12, top deck view of crack, looking to the north. Time stamp: March 13, 2018, at 11:16:50 a.m., labels added by the NTSB. Photo courtesy of NTSB.

Figure 1. Location: Diaphragm II, west side directly adjacent to vertical member 12, top deck view of crack, looking to the north. Time stamp: March 13, 2018, at 11:16:50 a.m., labels added by the NTSB. Photo courtesy of NTSB.

Also likely to be discussed are the huge cracks that appeared on one of the bridge’s support structures weeks before it went up over Tamiami Trail. The NTSB revealed construction workers were working on tensioning the support structures, including the cracked one, when the bridge fell. FIGG Engineering knew about the cracks but allegedly did not deem them a safety concern and continued with the project.

PantherNOW will cover the meeting, and you can watch along with us here: http://ntsb.windrosemedia.com/.

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