Pittsburgh approves $500K payment to end Fern Hollow Bridge collapse lawsuit

Pittsburgh City Council on Tuesday voted to approve a $500,000 payment to the victims of the Fern Hollow Bridge collapse.

Mayor Ed Gainey’s administration this month announced intentions to resolve the lawsuit that has been unfolding in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court for more than two years.

Eight people were injured when the Fern Hollow Bridge collapsed in the city’s Frick Park the morning of Jan. 28, 2022.

The National Transportation Safety Board in February determined the 447-foot-long span collapsed because Pittsburgh failed to address severe corrosion and decay over several years.

Victims of the collapse sued the city, as well as three engineering firms that were hired by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation to inspect the bridge before it fell.

State law caps the city’s total liability at $500,000. Council unanimously voted to approve payment of the full amount.

Councilwoman Theresa Kail-Smith, D-West End, was not present for the vote.

Lawsuits are continuing against the engineering firms, which are not subject to the $500,000 limit.

“We appreciate the city finally accepting partial responsibility for allowing one of its bridges to collapse,” said Peter Giglione, a lawyer who represents Daryl Luciani, the Pittsburgh Regional Transit bus driver injured that day, and his wife, Karen. “We’ll continue to proceed with our cases against the remaining defendants in court, and we look forward to a public jury trial next year.”

The city filed a petition in court to put the money under the court’s jurisdiction so a judge could decide how to divvy it up among the victims. The judge overseeing the case has yet to rule on the petition.

Related:

• Pittsburgh moves to pay $500K to end Fern Hollow lawsuit

• Bus driver, dentist hurt in Fern Hollow Bridge collapse sue Pittsburgh, 3 engineering firms

• 'Cascade of failures': NTSB blames Fern Hollow Bridge collapse on city, state, feds