Bridge Collapse

Since the collapse of Fern Hollow Bridge in Frick Park, many Pittsburghers have been asking: What exactly is Fern Hollow? For one, it’s a ravine in Pittsburgh’s East End that has a creek running through its center. The ravine also partially marks the border between Squirrel Hill and Regent Square....

Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey said Tuesday that the city will work with PennDOT to reinspect every city-owned bridge that is rated in poor condition. “If any of those bridges are deemed unsafe to travel on, they will be closed immediately,” Gainey said during a news conference at the site of...

Less than two months after the Fern Hollow Bridge collapsed in Pittsburgh, PennDOT officials are announcing both design and construction efforts are underway to replace the bridge. The new structure will remain along the same roadway, with four lanes for vehicles, shoulders, a sidewalk, and a shared-use path. Construction is...

Pittsburgh City Council on Tuesday approved several measures intended to improve the way the city investigates, reports on and provides funding for its infrastructure needs. The measures come in the wake of the Fern Hollow Bridge collapse in Pittsburgh’s Frick Park in January, which has brought heightened awareness to the...

A Penn Hills couple injured when Pittsburgh’s Fern Hollow Bridge collapsed last month will sue Port Authority of Allegheny County, PennDOT and the city of Pittsburgh, attorneys said Friday. Tyrone Perry was driving with his wife, Velva, across the bridge over Frick Park when it collapsed around 6:40 a.m. Jan....

Proposals before Pittsburgh City Council to increase focus on the city’s infrastructure in the wake of the Fern Hollow Bridge collapse are drawing mixed reactions from council members. The first piece of legislation would create a 15-member committee of city officials, construction industry professionals, organized labor representatives and others to...

Chad Leichliter is a big fan of bridges — well-maintained ones, anyway. The 41-year-old Jeannette electrician traverses dozens of spans of all sizes on a typical workday, sometimes hauling up to 10 tons with his equipment truck and trailer. “I prefer my bridges not to collapse when I drive over...

The collapse of Pittsburgh’s Fern Hollow Bridge likely started on the west, or Squirrel Hill, side of the span, according to a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board released Monday. The brief report notes only facts surrounding the collapse and the bridge itself. It does not draw any...

A week after the Fern Hollow Bridge collapsed into Frick Park, cleanup is underway and plans to rebuild are in motion. For the Pittsburgh police officers who first arrived at the bridge on Jan. 28, the sights, sounds and overwhelming magnitude of the scene remain crystal clear. “I don’t think...

Work will begin immediately to design a bridge to replace Pittsburgh’s collapsed Fern Hollow Bridge and to remove the collapsed one, city and state officials said Friday. This comes one week after 10 people were injured when the bridge in Pittsburgh’s Frick Park collapsed, sending a Port Authority bus and...

Emergency services scanner traffic indicates a chaotic scene in the first moments after the Fern Hollow Bridge collapsed Jan. 28 in Pittsburgh’s Frick Park. “Female screaming on the phone, possible vehicle over the bridge, stating the bridge gave out. Unknown injuries,” a dispatcher says at 6:41 a.m. Moments later, another...

In true Pittsburgh spirit, the people in this city support each other through hardships. The aftermath from the collapse of the bridge carrying Forbes Avenue over Fern Hollow Creek in Pittsburgh’s Frick Park where 10 people were injured Friday could take a long time. Workers have been at the site...

Pittsburgh EMS District Chief Antwain Carter said he found the emergency dispatch hard to believe at first. A dispatcher came over the radio and said a woman had called screaming, reporting that Pittsburgh’s Fern Hollow Bridge had collapsed at Forbes and South Braddock avenues. Carter looked at the other district...

The observation platform meant to satisfy curious onlookers of the Fern Hollow Bridge collapse site was short-lived, as Pittsburgh officials shut it down indefinitely Wednesday morning as crews prepare to rebuild the well-traveled span. The public viewing area, opened Monday on the Squirrel Hill side of the Fern Hollow Bridge,...

Alex Delp was seven days into his engineering career with Allegheny Crane and Rigging last week when he found himself hovering 250 feet in the air overlooking the rubble of Pittsburgh’s Fern Hollow Bridge. “It started out like any normal Friday,” said Delp, 23, of Lower Burrell. The day quickly...

PennDOT said $25.3 million in federal funding has been allocated to replace the collapsed Fern Hollow Bridge, and the state transportation agency will assist in design and construction. Ten people were injured Friday when the bridge in Pittsburgh’s Frick Park collapsed, sending a Port Authority bus and several other vehicles...

The morning after it was hoisted hundreds of feet into the air and out of a ravine in Frick Park, Port Authority bus 3309 was towed from the scene Tuesday morning. Before the bus could be freed from the Fern Hollow Bridge wreckage Monday evening, HazMat crews had to drain...

Pittsburgh City Councilman Corey O’Connor introduced legislation Tuesday to create an infrastructure commission that he hopes would prevent an event like Friday’s Fern Hollow Bridge collapse from happening again. O’Connor’s proposals would create a commission on infrastructure asset reporting and investment and require regular reports on the city’s infrastructure. They...

PennDOT officials said Tuesday they plan to reinspect five bridges in Pennsylvania that have similar designs as the collapsed Fern Hollow Bridge in Pittsburgh. The bridges scheduled for reinspection include the ramp from Beechwood Boulevard to the Parkway East in Squirrel Hill, the Canon-McMillan Alumni Bridge in North Strabane and...

The bridge that collapsed in Pittsburgh’s Frick Park last week showed deterioration during a September inspection that was not bad enough to require its closure, PennDOT said Monday. The agency will not release the full inspection report, PennDOT spokesperson Alexis Campbell said, citing state and federal laws and the ongoing...

A Pittsburgh couple in a red pickup truck cheated death twice as the Forbes Avenue bridge collapsed Friday and crashed to the ground with their truck still on it. Ten people were injured in the collapse, including Tyrone and Velva Perry, both 69, of Pittsburgh. An estimated 14,000 motorists daily...

Life will be a little different for people living near the collapsed Forbes Avenue bridge. The consensus among residents is that while the loss of the bridge over Fern Hollow in Frick Park has created some inconveniences, they’ll adapt just fine. They don’t have a choice. The vibe in nearby...

Declarations of emergency from Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey and Gov. Tom Wolf could help fast-track federal and state money to help pay for the cleanup and construction of the Forbes Avenue bridge over Fern Hollow in Frick Park. How quickly the process will move along is uncertain, but constructing a...

One of the Pittsburgh area’s congressmen is pointing to Friday’s bridge collapse as proof of the need for the nation’s latest infrastructure spending plan. Rep. Mike Doyle, D-Forest Hills, praised the “brave and rapid response” of first responders and wished those who were injured speedy recoveries. “It was a miracle...