Miami pedestrian bridge collapses killing several, police say

“FIU is about building bridges and student safety. This project accomplishes our mission beautifully.” - FIU President Mark B. Rosenberg

 

Oh get a grip. No one has any idea what happened yet.

 

all i know it was missing a few spans holding the whole frecken thing up

 

I'd feel bad about pointing out the irony....

 

https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/15/us/miami-bridge-collapse/index.html
yeah just a few all missing spans what a pretty looking bridge while it lasted

 

FIU walkout website up yet?

 

I hope that wasn't the product of the FIU intern program.

 

ah so without the spans, it can last a 10 mph will gus~t

 

Well, school kids can't line local politicians' pockets like developers can...

 

oh i see who they take care of first now

 

Good job finding something even more distasteful to post than the OP's crap about a ban. Let's use any and every tragedy as an excuse to do some political trolling, eh.

 

It's a page from Obama and Alinsky's playbook. Let no crisis go to waste. Isn't there another "school thread" for you to opine in?

 

Isn't that what happens after every school shooting, Durandal?

That was kinda the whole point of the OP's sarcasm: "Let no tragedy or atrocity go unexploited". Every time some people get killed some asshat has to climb on top of their coffins and start pushing their own personal and/or political agenda.

 

Yeah I bet some do, right off the bat, the **** that is missing probably wasn't just for holding up fat people or extra for a hurricane.

 

More of our wonderous, stunning "American know-how" on display.... It's bad enough when we have vehicle bridges falling to pieces on interstate highways but now we can't even build a reliable f*cking FOOTBRIDGE?!

 

Unfortunately, the ironies don't end there:

 

How low can you go to make a political point out of a tragedy!

 

http://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/f...on-firms-accused-of-unsafe-practices-10176596

Construction Firms Behind Collapsed FIU Bridge Faced Accusations of Unsafe Practices

Munilla was accused in Miami-Dade Civil Court March 5 of severely injuring a TSA employee at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport because of shoddy work. According to the lawsuit, Munilla — which has a major contract to expand the airport — built a "makeshift bridge" through an area where airport workers must walk to reach restrooms.

Jose Perez, a TSA worker, was walking on the bridge October 20, 2016, when it "broke under [his] weight" and sent him falling to the ground.

The FIU project isn't the first major bridge built by Figg to collapse in recent years. A Figg-assembled span in Virginia fell apart in June 2012 while under construction. Workers were installing a 90-ton concrete portion of the South Norfolk Jordan Bridge when it dropped 40 feet onto railroad tracks below, according to the Virginian-Pilot.

 

Too soon perhaps.

 

I guess you don't get irony...

 

this looks better built
then the Florida International University's campus. one

 

Wow, that's horrible. .
I don't like when I get stuck in traffic and have to sit under an overpass or bridge, always in the back of my mind that things give way sometimes.
The poor people in that white chevy.

 

The more I'm reading the more 'political' this tragedy becomes. From start to collapse the entire project seems borne of built by and drowned in politics and political correctness.

http://www.edubachelordegree.com/ed...kind-pedestrian-bridge-swings-into-place.html

Construction marvel to connect FIU to Sweetwater

This morning, the main span of the FIU-Sweetwater UniversityCity Bridge was lifted from its temporary supports, rotated 90 degrees across an eight-lane thoroughfare, and lowered into its permanent position.

“FIU is about building bridges and student safety. This project accomplishes our mission beautifully,” said FIU President Mark B. Rosenberg. “We are filled with pride and satisfaction at seeing this engineering feat come to life and connect our campus to the surrounding community where thousands of our students live.”

The 174-foot, 950-ton section of the bridge was built adjacent to Southwest Eight Street using Accelerated Bridge Construction (ABC) methods, which are being advanced at FIU’s Accelerated Bridge Construction University Transportation Center (ABC-UTC). This method of construction reduces potential risks to workers, commuters and pedestrians and minimizes traffic interruptions. The main span of the FIU-Sweetwater UniversityCity Bridge was installed in a few hours with limited disruption to traffic over this weekend.

“This project is an outstanding example of the ABC method,” said chair of FIU’s Civil & Environmental Engineering Department and director of FIU’s ABC-UTC Atorod Azizinamini, who is one of the world’s leading experts on Accelerated Bridge Construction. “Building the major element of the bridge – its main span superstructure – outside of the traveled way and away from busy Eighth Street is a milestone.”

The FIU-Sweetwater UniversityCity Bridge is the largest pedestrian bridge moved via Self-Propelled Modular Transportation in U.S. history. It is also the first in the world to be constructed entirely of self-cleaning concrete. When exposed to sunlight, the titanium dioxide in the concrete captures pollutants and turns it bright white, reducing maintenance costs.

“FIU has come a long way since the TIGER grant that funded this pedestrian bridge was awarded in 2013. This project represents a true collaboration among so many different partners at local, state, and federal levels, and in both the public and private sectors,” said Mario Diaz-Balart, U.S. Representative and Chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development. “The university’s growth and acceleration is no longer just about the campus and its student body; it’s about the future of Sweetwater, Miami-Dade County and the entire South Florida region. I believe this is what creative solutions to transportation challenges look like, and I will continue to support and incentivize these new ideas.”

Funding for the $14.2 million bridge, connecting plazas and walkways is part of a $19.4 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation. Other funding agencies include the Federal Highway Administration, Florida Department of Transportation Local Agency Program, FIU and the City of Sweetwater.

“The FIU-Sweetwater bridge will serve many purposes including being a visually distinctive gateway to our city,” said City of Sweetwater Mayor Orlando Lopez. “This bridge is symbolic of the growth our city is experiencing and our partnership with FIU.”

Construction of the bridge began in the spring of 2017 and is expected to be completed in early 2019. When it is finished, the bridge will be 289 feet long and 109 feet tall. The 32-foot-wide bridge will also serve as study and gathering space.

“This bridge is the result of great support from our congressional delegation and the U.S. Department of Transportation,” said FIU Senior Vice President and CFO Kenneth Jessell. “This bridge has already been the catalyst for significant economic development in the City of Sweetwater. FIU and our surrounding community will benefit from this project for generations to come.”

The bridge was designed by FIGG Bridge Engineers and built by MCM. Barnhart Crane and Rigging operated the Self-Propelled Modular Transporters that placed the bridge on its permanent supports.

 

My friend is a structural engineer at a very prestigious firm in Los Angeles and I have spoken with him about this. The general "acceptance limitations" have without a doubt been relaxed.

Guess there are good and bad reasons, this being one of the bad of course....

 

so in a nut shell the bridge was a PC global looking beta bridge for students easy on the eyes then, and lack strength of a real bridge