MIAMI _ Failures in design, lack of adequate oversight and systematic negligence led to the fatal collapse of the Florida International University pedestrian bridge, federal investigators concluded nearly two years after the deadly incident.
According to the National Transportation Safety Board's final report, released Wednesday, the bridge collapse over Southwest Eighth Street and 109th Avenue on March 15, 2018, was caused by "the load and capacity calculation errors made by FIGG Bridge Engineers Inc.," followed by the "inadequate peer review performed by Louis Berger," the New Jersey-based engineering firm.
The firm was tasked with overseeing the design by FIGG Bridge Engineers, which was contracted by MCM, the company FIU hired to build the pedestrian walkway.
The bridge's 950-ton span collapsed suddenly onto cars parked at a red light on Tamiami Trail shortly after 1:30 p.m. on a Thursday afternoon, killing six people, including Alexa Duran, an 18-year-old FIU student. Ten others were injured.
The visible cracks in the structure's southern side were final indicators that the bridge could cave in if enough weight and pressure was applied, due to shortcomings in the bridge's original design, the NTSB concluded.
But the fractured concrete didn't raise major issues with FIGG Bridge Engineers, who ordered crews on March 15 to tighten steel support rods to try to close the cracks but failed to ask the Florida Department of Transportation to close the road while the work was going on.
NTSB spread responsibility for the catastrophic failure across state and local contractors.
"All parties involved in the ... project to build the pedestrian bridge were aware of the cracks and their progression, including FDOT, FIU, FIGG, MCM, and Bolton, Perez," NTSB said in its 152-page report.
"Likewise, all parties were present at the meeting on the morning of the collapse, March 15, to hear the FIGG presentation on the worsening structural distress. The remedial work called for placing workers on the structure without identifying the origin of the distress or determining whether the cracks were structural."
NTSB, which cannot issue sanctions, recommended that the Florida Department of Transportation revise its manuals to require "qualified independent peer review" for certain bridge structures to include reviews of design calculations.
It also recommended that FDOT require local agencies to document structural cracks and immediately close the road and bridge when cracks occur.
The federal agency recommended that FIGG Bridge Engineers train its staff on proper calculations of shear force resistance.
Christos Lagos, an attorney representing one of the victims of the collapse, said he was thankful for the NTSB's willingness in working with victims' families to access confidential documents and information prior to the release of the final report.
"Their thorough analysis of the facts provided much needed insight for the victims and their families," said Lagos, who represents the estate of Rolando Fraga, who was in his car when the bridge collapsed. "Their diligent efforts have also led to the issuance of safety recommendations that will undoubtedly be instrumental in preventing such tragedies from occurring in the future."
Most of the findings and recommendations had been made public by the federal regulating agency in a piecemeal fashion for several months, including more than 6,000 pages of investigative documents released last month. At a hearing in October, NTSB officials called the FIU bridge collapse a "catastrophic failure."
While Florida prosecutors have not weighed in on potential charges stemmed to the bridge collapse, Miami-Dade Police Department has led a homicide investigation into the six deaths.
