4 Injured After Massive Crane Topples at Miami Construction Site

A massive crane came crashing down at a Miami construction site Monday morning, crushing a car, trapping workers inside a metal container and sending four people to the hospital.

The frightening collapse happened shortly after 8 a.m. in Miami’s upscale Brickell neighborhood, according to officials.

Miami Fire Chief Robert Hevia said the scene looked so severe that emergency crews were fortunate no one was killed.

“When you look at the site, it’s incredible,” Hevia said during a news conference.

One woman was driving on a street next to the construction site when she suddenly saw the crane beginning to topple.

She quickly threw her vehicle into reverse and managed to move just far enough to escape before the crane came crashing down on the car.

The vehicle then caught fire.

“She was able to pull her car in reverse just slightly enough to be able to get out of the vehicle while the vehicle also caught on fire when the crane landed on the car,” Hevia said.

The falling crane also slammed into a large storage container with two construction workers trapped inside.

Firefighters faced what Hevia described as a “complex scene,” with one emergency crew cutting into the metal container to free the workers while another battled the nearby fire.

Both trapped workers were eventually rescued and taken to a trauma center with minor injuries.

The crane operator also managed to jump out as the massive machine began tipping over. He was hospitalized with minor injuries as well.

The woman whose car was struck was taken to a separate hospital, also suffering minor injuries.

Despite the dramatic destruction, Hevia said every other worker at the construction site had been accounted for.

Officials have not released the names of the four people injured.

The equipment involved was described as a piling rig, a heavy construction machine similar to a crane that is used to drive large columns deep into the ground to help support major structures.

Investigators have not yet determined what caused the piling rig to suddenly topple.

The collapse remains under investigation.

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