Miami police: ‘Multiple deaths’ after pedestrian bridge at Florida university collapses over eight lanes of traffic

At least six people were injured Thursday afternoon when a pedestrian bridge at Florida International University collapsed onto eight lanes of road traffic and police believe multiple people have died.

A reporter on scene said Miami-Dade police confirmed “mass casualties” due to multiple cars stuck under thousands of pounds of concrete.

Multiple first responders at the scene told reporters eight vehicles were stuck under the bridge and eight people had been taken to local hospitals. They did not state the number of deaths, but said at least two construction workers had been on the bridge at the time of the collapse.

The bridge had not yet been opened to the public.

One witness said she had just driven under the footbridge before it collapsed.

Video footage posted after the incident shows emergency responders at the scene and a crane next to the bridge running over Southwest Eighth Street in western Miami. It’s not clear if the crane was on scene to help lift the bridge off victims or if it had been there for construction.

The bridge was installed just last week. During the ceremony, FIU President Mark Rosenberg said, “FIU is about building bridges and student safety. This project accomplishes our mission beautifully.”

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct the number of highway lanes ran underneath the bridge. The correct number is eight.