Following the collapse of one of the bridges in Pittsburgh, President Joe Biden toured the area where the incident occurred and vowed to fix all the bridges.
The Fern Hollow Bridge located in Point Breeze, which is a residential neighborhood in Pittsburgh, collapsed in the early hours of Friday morning (January 28th). Unfortunately, there were vehicles on the bridge at the time of the collapse. Rescuers notably had to rappel 150 feet in order to save people. Others formed a human chain in order to rescue riders from a dangling bus. A total of 10 people were injured and three were transported to a hospital nearby. All three have non-life-threatening injuries.
According to the New York Post, President Biden described the scene as incredible while praising the first responders. When speaking to reporters nearby, the President declared, “I didn’t realize there are literally more bridges in Pittsburgh than any other city in the world. Did you know? More than in Venice… We’re going – they’re going to fix them all. Not a joke.”
President Biden also spoke about the Pittsburgh bridge, which is nearly 50 years old. “It has been rated in poor condition for the past 10 years. There are another 3,300 bridges here in Pennsylvania. Some of which are just as old and just as decrepit [in] condition as that bridge was.”
President Biden’s trip to Pittsburgh was on the agenda prior to the bridge collapse. He made an appearance at the Steel City to promote his $1.2 billion bipartisan infrastructure bill. The bill includes $110 billion going towards roads and bridges throughout the country. The President declared that the bill will provide Pennsylvania with $1.6 billion for the bridges.
Pennsylvania Liutenant Governor John Fetterman Visits Pittsburgh Bridge Collapse Scene While Wearing Shorts
Along with President Biden, Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor, John Fetterman also visited the Pittsburgh bridge collapse scene hours after the incident. Fetterman was wearing shorts while on the bridge speaking to President Biden when he arrived.
The New York Post also reports that Fetterman ended up attending President Biden’s speech in Pittsburgh. Despite not initially being scheduled to do so. He was going to attend a meeting with the Democratic state committee in Harrisburg, which is approximately 200 miles away from the Steel City.
However, Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro decided to skip President Biden’s event in Pittsburgh. His spokesperson stated,” Josh Shapiro is running to be the governor of Pennsylvania. He’s focused on the issues that matter to Pennsylvania families. Like every American should, Josh wants our president to be successful. And we’ll continue welcoming President Biden to his home state of Pennsylvania.”
Fetterman is currently running for the Senate seat, which is held by retiring Republican Pat Toomey.
