NTSB issues second update in FIU bridge collapse investigation

Photograph of 174-foot-long main span on March 10, 2018, prior to placement on south pier and north pylon pier, looking west. Labels showing diagonal member 11 and vertical member 12 added by NTSB.

Washington, D.C. — An investigative update issued by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) on Nov. 15 about its ongoing investigation of the fatal, FIU pedestrian bridge collapse in Miami, says errors were made in the design of the 174-foot span and cracking observed prior to the collapse is consistent with those errors.

Six people died and eight others were injured when the bridge collapsed March 15, 2018. Eight vehicles were crushed in the collapse, seven of the vehicles were occupied.

The update states errors made were in the design of the northernmost nodal region of the span where two truss members were connected to the bridge deck. The design errors resulted in an overestimation of the capacity (resistance) of a critical section through the node, and, an apparent underestimation of the demand (load) on that section.

The design review was conducted by the Federal Highway Administration’s Office of Bridges and Structures in support of the NTSB’s ongoing investigation.  The Federal Highway Administration is a party to the NTSB’s investigation.

The Turner-Fairbanks Highway Research Center, part of the Federal Highway Administration, conducted numerous tests and examinations of concrete and steel samples taken from the bridge following its collapse. The concrete and steel specimens tested by Turner-Fairbanks Highway Research Center personnel met the project’s build plans specified minimum requirements.  Findings from the materials tests include:

• Concrete core specimens from the bridge deck and bridge canopy met the compression requirements in the project plans.
• The design plans specified concrete used for the project had to be in accordance with Florida Department of Transportation specifications. All specimens from the bridge deck and bridge canopy were within the specified range for total air content.
• Tension test results of size #5, #8 and #11 steel reinforcing bars revealed all met minimum yield and tensile strengths and percent elongation at fracture, for their respective sizes. Size #7 bars could not be tested due to collapse-induced deformation.

The NTSB’s investigation of the bridge collapse is ongoing and the information contained in the investigative update is preliminary and will be supplemented or corrected as the investigation progresses.  As such, no conclusions about probable cause should be drawn from the information contained in the investigative update.

The investigative update is available online at https://go.usa.gov/xPGnG.