Photo: Jeff Swensen / Getty Images
Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board showed up in a wooded ravine in Pittsburgh, precisely the bridge that fell on the Friday before the visit of the US president, Joe Biden.
Inspectors flew a drone over the area in search of clues as to why the bridge with a steel structure of 52 years collapsed in the pre-dawn darkness, leaving 10 people injured according to the report of the local authorities.
The NTSB investigations will lead to a full comprehensive investigation of the collapse of the bridge, including design, construction and maintenance, said the agency’s president, Jennifer Homendy.
“Over the next few weeks, we are going to put this bridge under a microsc opium”, assured Homendy at a press conference last Saturday.
The collapse occurred hours before Biden’s previously scheduled visit to the city to discuss infrastructure issues.
On the other hand, on a scheduled visit to Kansas City, the Secretary of Transportation , Pete Buttigieg, described the landslide as a “very forceful reminder” of the need to invest in roads and bridges in the United States.
“The bottom line is that this should not happen in the United States of America,” the secretary said of the collapse.
Homendy said that the materials and structural engineers would map out the area with a drone before to remove the rubble and other evidence that leads to the possible cause of the collapse of the bridge.
The 13 members of the NTSB will look for signs of stress in the materials that made up the bridge, as well as fractures and deterioration, according to the investigator in charge of the NTSB, Dennis Collins.
Four cars were on the bridge when it collapsed between the area of Forbes and Braddock avenues, reported the authorities.
The rescuers took hold of ropes to rappel and reach the victims, said Pittsburgh Fire Chief Darryl Jones. They also used what he called a “daisy chain” in which hands were linked to reach people out.
The Pittsburgh Transit Authority bus that was left dangling between two sections of the The bridge had nine cameras installed on it, Homendy said, but it is not known if the images will be of use to the investigation.
The bus could not be moved safely, since it still had diesel fuel on board.
The bridge it had received an “overall condition” rating of “poor” , according to the website of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, which tracks bridges throughout the state.
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