At least 4 killed in Miami pedestrian bridge collapse

Police in Miami say at least four people were killed when a pedestrian bridge collapsed Thursday afternoon, crashing down on vehicles driving along the Tamiami Trail highway and leaving some victims trapped for hours.

Of the people killed, one was a student at Florida International University, The Miami Herald reports. Nine people have been rescued from the rubble, with two of them rushed to the hospital for surgery; others suffered broken bones, scrapes, and bruises. Crews are still searching for more survivors.

The pedestrian bridge was installed to make it safer for Florida International University students to cross the busy, eight-lane Tamiami Trail. On Saturday, a 175-foot span of the bridge went up, but it wasn't scheduled to open to pedestrians until 2019. Several witnesses said when the bridge collapsed, they saw two workers on it. Two of the construction firms involved with building the bridge have been previously accused of unsafe practices, the Miami New Times reports.

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