The large, light-blue crane section sat atop a crushed vehicle on the SE 3rd Avenue bridge in downtown Fort Lauderdale Thursday evening next to a partly constructed building as investigators tried to piece together what caused the fatal incident.
Fort Lauderdale Fire Chief Stephen Gollan said at a media conference that the accident occurred around 4:30 p.m. while crane segments were being added to extend the crane's reach at the construction site. Gollan said a platform carrying a large crane piece became unstable and failed, causing the piece to tumble to the bridge below.
Gollan said the deceased victim was a construction worker who fell from the building site as a result of the accident. Fort Lauderdale police identified him on Friday as 27-year-old Jorge De La Torre.
Two others injured in the incident were transported to Broward Health hospital facilities, according to fire rescue. They were reportedly vehicle occupants wounded when the crane section fell onto the bridge. A third person sustained minor injuries and declined medical treatment, according to Gollan.
Witnesses reported hearing screams coming from the vicinity of the bridge over the New River after the accident.
"When the section of the crane fell, it did impact the bridge, leaving a hole," Gollan told reporters Thursday.
Images released by Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue show two severely damaged vehicles near the bridge entrance, one of which remained pinned under the toppled crane section. The bridge reopened later in the evening after a structural assessment, according to a city bulletin.
Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue said its first responders went floor by floor to ensure workers were safe and accounted for. Gollan said construction at the site has been shut down, and the surrounding buildings are not in danger.
After the accident, the primary crane structure remained in place at the building site, which is located at 333 North New River Drive East.
"It is a busy time on Las Olas. We are lucky that there were not more injuries or fatalities," said Fort Lauderdale Police Chief William Schultz.
View of the construction site where a fatal crane collapse took place on April 4, 2024.
Photo by Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue
The investigation into the Fort Lauderdale accident is underway, with the Fort Lauderdale Police Department coordinating with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
The RealDeal reported that developer Gables Residential purchased the site in 2021 for more than $33 million and began developing it shortly after.
The general contractor listed on a notice of commencement for the apartment building project is KAST Construction, a West Palm Beach-based general contractor. According to an AP report, OSHA said it was also investigating Maxim Crane and Phoenix Rigging & Erecting.
KAST had a prior fatal construction accident in 2016, when construction worker Carlos Sanchez fell off a high floor on the then-under-construction Alexander Lofts apartment building in West Palm Beach at 333 Fern Street. A gust of wind caused concrete formwork to fall of the building, and Sanchez was dragged to his death.
Sanchez's family sued KAST and its subcontractors, accusing them of safety violations at the site, including failing to secure the formwork and ensure proper fall protections. The case was settled in 2020.
With development booming and construction constantly underway in the densely populated Miami metro area, crane accidents are not uncommon in South Florida.
In August 2023, a crane accident in Miami at HCA Mercy Hospital killed construction worker Mario Andino Renteria. The crane failed while hoisting air-conditioning equipment.
Andino Renteria's father has a claim pending against the contractors who were allegedly in charge of the hospital project, claiming they did not conduct proper safety checks on the crane's jib and boom.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
