A snow-covered bridge collapsed Friday morning in Pittsburgh just hours before President Joe Biden was scheduled to talk about infrastructure in the area.
Pittsburgh Public Safety announced around 7 a.m. that the bridge on the outskirts of Frick Park had collapsed, injuring ten people. Three of the people hurt were a driver and two passengers who were also on the bus when the bridge collapsed. Crews rescued multiple people from the bus which was reported by the Associated Press to be hanging off the bridge. Responders who slipped and fell while rescuing others were also among the injured.
The city’s fire chief Darryl Jones told NBC affiliate WPXI of Pittsburg that rescue crews had to extend approximately 100 feet to save people.
The collapse of the bridge caused a gas leak, requiring authorities to cut a gas line due to a “strong smell of natural gas,” according to Pittsburgh Public Safety. Officials have urged everyone to avoid the area for safety reasons. Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf stated that his team was “monitoring the situation in Pittsburgh and prepared to provide support as needed.” He also went to Twitter and said, “Pittsburgh residents: Please stay safe and continue to avoid the area.”
Pittsburgh Public Schools officials made the decision to transition to remote learning for grades K-8, 6-8 due to “the impact of a bridge collapse in the East End and a high volume of bus driver call-offs.”
Press Secretary of the White House Jen Psaki said that Biden would still visit West Mifflin, which is 10 miles outside of Pittsburgh, and “will stay in touch with officials on the ground about additional assistance we can provide.” She also stated that President Biden “is grateful to the first responders who rushed to assist the drivers who were on the bridge at the time.”
