Florida Bridge Collapse: Workers Were Adjusting Tension When It Collapsed, NTSB Says
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SWEETWATER (CBSMiami) -- Investigators have confirmed that workers were adjusting the tension on the bridge at Florida International University when it collapsed.
National Transportation Safety Board released their latest findings Wednesday saying in part, "The investigative team has confirmed that workers were adjusting tension on the two tensioning rods located in the diagonal member at the north end of the span when the bridge collapsed."
Investigators say they had done the same thing on the South end and had adjusted one rod. They then went to work on the second rod when the span failed and collapsed, killing 6 people on March 15th.
Meantime, the investigation continues into what caused the collapse.
Crews are removing components from the bridge that investigators believe need to be examined more.
They are shipping some samples they have taken from the bridge like recovered rebar and tensioning rods to the Turner Fairbank Highway Research Center, in McLean, Virginia, for testing and evaluation.
The larger portions of the bridge were being removed and stored at a secured Florida Department of Transportation facility, under the control of the NTSB.
NTSB investigators are also interviewing first responders.
At last check, there are no plans to reconstruct the bridge as part of their investigation.
The next major update is expected during their preliminary report which is usually released a few weeks after they've completed their fieldwork. As of Wednesday, investigators were still at the scene.
