Pittsburgh bridge collapse: Mayor to issue disaster emergency declaration
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PITTSBURGH (NewsNation Now) — The mayor of Pittsburgh plans to sign a declaration of disaster emergency for the city in light of last week’s collapse of a bridge in a city park.
Mayor Ed Gainey said the declaration would increase the availability of federal funds and speed cleanup and reconstruction of the Frick Park bridge, improving coordination between the state transportation department and the city.
Gainey said the declaration would be in effect for the next few days but called on council members to extend it. He also he said the city planned to be a party to the National Transportation Safety Board’s investigation into the collapse.
A commuter bus sits upright on a section of a collapsed bridge in Pittsburgh, on Friday, Jan. 28, 2022. Police reported the span, on Forbes Avenue over Fern Hollow Creek in Frick Park, came down around 6 a.m. There were no initial reports of injuries, Pittsburgh Public Safety said on Twitter. (Greg Barnhisel via AP) 
A commuter bus sits upright on a section of a collapsed bridge in Pittsburgh, on Friday, Jan. 28, 2022. Police reported the span, on Forbes Avenue over Fern Hollow Creek in Frick Park, came down around 6 a.m. There were no initial reports of injuries, Pittsburgh Public Safety said on Twitter. (Greg Barnhisel via AP) 
A commuter bus sits upright on a section of a collapsed bridge in Pittsburgh, on Friday, Jan. 28, 2022. Police reported the span, on Forbes Avenue over Fern Hollow Creek in Frick Park, came down around 6 a.m. There were no initial reports of injuries, Pittsburgh Public Safety said on Twitter. (Greg Barnhisel via AP) 
A Port Authority bus that was on a bridge when it collapsed Friday Jan. 28, 2022, is visible in Pittsburgh’s East End. A two-lane bridge collapsed in Pittsburgh early Friday, prompting rescuers to rappel nearly 150 feet (46 meters) while others formed a human chain to help rescue multiple people from a dangling bus.(AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar) 
A Port Authority bus that was on a bridge when it collapsed Friday Jan. 28, 2022, is visible in Pittsburgh’s East End. A two-lane bridge collapsed in Pittsburgh early Friday, prompting rescuers to rappel nearly 150 feet (46 meters) while others formed a human chain to help rescue multiple people from a dangling bus.(AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar) 
Vehicles that were on a bridge when it collapsed are visible, Friday Jan. 28, 2022, in Pittsburgh’s East End. When the bridge collapsed, rescuers rappeled nearly 150 feet while others formed a human chain to help rescue multiple people from the dangling bus. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar) 
A Port Authority bus that was on a bridge when it collapsed Friday Jan. 28, 2022, is visible in Pittsburgh’s East End. When the bridge collapsed, rescuers rappeled nearly 150 feet while others formed a human chain to help rescue multiple people from the dangling bus. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar) 
Emergency vehicles are parked at the edge of a bridge that collapsed, Friday Jan. 28, 2022 in Pittsburgh’s East End. A two-lane bridge collapsed in Pittsburgh early Friday, prompting rescuers to rappel nearly 150 feet (46 meters) while others formed a human chain to help rescue multiple people from a dangling bus. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar) 
Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitgerald, right, takes a photo of the scenes where a bridge collapsed, Friday Jan. 28, 2022, in Pittsburgh’s East End. A two-lane bridge collapsed in Pittsburgh early Friday, prompting rescuers to rappel nearly 150 feet (46 meters) while others formed a human chain to help rescue multiple people from a dangling bus. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Federal investigators continued work Sunday at the collapsed bridge, which they have vowed to put “under a microscope” to determine the cause. Five vehicles and a city bus were on the bridge at the time of the pre-dawn collapse.
City officials said three people were taken to hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries and other people, including some first responders, were treated at the scene for minor injuries. The collapse ruptured gas lines that ran along the bridge, causing a large gas leak and the subsequent evacuation of several families from their homes.
The collapse came hours before President Joe Biden arrived in the city to promote his $1 trillion infrastructure law, which has earmarked about $1.6 billion for Pennsylvania bridge maintenance.
There are more than 45,000 bridges in need of urgent repairs because of poor conditions for structural components or issues with waterways, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. As of 2020, the Department of Transportation says it would take more than $39 billion to repair every structurally deficient bridge.
It’s important to note that the Department of Transportation says that a structurally deficient bridge is not going to suddenly collapse overnight, but the rating acts as a warning to federal and state officials that urgent repairs are needed to keep the bridge safe.
