2 people injured at Pittsburgh bridge collapse require legal action – CBS Pittsburgh

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – Two of those injured in the Fern Hollow Bridge collapse are suing the city of Pittsburgh, PennDOT and the Port Authority.

The notice of intent to sue was sent by the family’s attorney on Wednesday and this is just the beginning of what could be a very long legal process.

READ MORE: Pittsburgh City Council considers law making alfresco dining permanent

Friday marks two weeks since the bridge collapsed into a ravine in Frick Park. Four cars and a Port Authority bus were swallowed with it, injuring 10 people.

(Photo Credit: Erin Perry)

Two of the injured were Tyrone and Velva Perry, who were traveling in their red pickup over the bridge that morning. KDKA-TV spoke to their daughter, Erin Perry, shortly after the incident.

“He said he saw the bridgehead locked, and he saw the back of the bridge folded up from the rearview mirror. He closes his eyes and they fall,” she said.

READ MORE: 2 shots at Perry North

Both suffered serious injuries, including broken backs, as a result of the fall.

Erin Perry told KDKA-TV: “It brought tears to my eyes because it could have been a different ending. “They could have lost their lives.”

As they continued to recuperate at home, the couple took the first steps legally, submitting a notice of intent to sue. In a statement Thursday, the family’s attorney said the notice was intended to notify agencies of the serious harm the Perrys suffered.

It went on to say that preliminary reports demonstrating the bridge’s deteriorating condition were known to the city and PennDOT and that it was “a complete failure of government accountability for public safety and to the Perrys.”

MORE NEWS: 1 time taken to hospital after crane fell in beaver county

The family is asking the parties responsible for the maintenance of safe public bridges and highways to act now to prevent something like this from happening again.