6 workers injured after construction accident at Brickell building site

MIAMI (WSVN) - Rescue crews have transported six construction workers to the hospital after they were injured in an accident at a Brickell building.

City of Miami Police and Fire Rescue crews responded to the scene near South Miami Avenue and Eighth Street at around 11:30 a.m., Wednesday.

7SkyForce HD hovered over the scene where several fire rescue units could be seen parked around the building under construction.

“Super loud. It was like an explosion,” resident Fabio Lopes said.

According to City of Miami Fire Rescue Lt. Pete Sanchez, the incident was caused by a malfunction of construction equipment being taken up to a construction site floor.

“We were told that a bundle of rebar was being transferred from the ground floor level up to a construction site level, and there was some type of malfunction, which caused the bundle to fall onto six construction site workers,” he said.

“It’s a total shock, especially for those of us who work in Brickell,” said Roberto J. Arguello.

Some residents living near the construction site watched the chaos unfold from their apartment buildings and posted videos to social media.

Some of the cellphone videos showed the construction workers frantically helping to free their coworkers from the rebar, while other workers screamed with panic.

“The sound was extremely loud. I felt it all the way up on the 15th floor where I live,” Lopes said.

Sanchez said three workers were trapped, and by the time rescue crews arrived, one of the workers had freed themselves. He added that two workers were impaled by rebar and needed to be freed.

“We were able to use our tools to let them free and then we transferred onto a stokes basket, and they were transferred onto the ground level behind me with units standing by to transport them,” Sanchez said.

Officials said a total of six victims were transported to Jackson Memorial Hospital’s Ryder Trauma Center with different injuries, including wounds to the head, shoulder, chest and leg. Their conditions range from serious to critical.

“Hopefully, they will all be OK today,” Sanchez said.

Many are left wondering how this accident happened.

“This kind of accident should not happen,” Arguello said.

“This should not be happening at a construction site, especially in such a busy area,” Lopes said.

A construction worker working near the scene said most of the workers that were injured are iron workers, which is a very dangerous job.

The cause of the collapse is still under investigation.

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