A steel cylinder weighing thousands of pounds broke free from a construction site on the University of Pittsburgh’s Oakland campus and fatally struck a passing hospital worker as it rolled down a hill, police said.
The massive metal tube, about the length of a pickup truck, somehow came loose on Friday around 10:40 a.m., rolled away from the site and then busted through a chain link fence before crashing into 51-year-old Aleia Lopez, Pittsburgh police spokeswoman Emily Bourne told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Witnesses attempted to administer CPR before medics arrived, but they were ultimately unsuccessful. Lopez, who was walking on the sidewalk nearby, suffered “catastrophic injuries” and responding EMTS pronounced her dead on the scene.
A spokesperson for the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center told USA Today that Lopez worked at the facility in the psychiatric hospital.
“Our immediate concern is the well-being of our employees, patients and visitors. While this was not a UPMC construction site, this tragedy impacts our campuses and we are providing support services to our employees,” UMPC said in a statement. “Our deepest sympathies are with the victim’s family, friends and colleagues.”
The steel cylinder, meanwhile, came to a rest against a black pickup truck, KDKA-TV reported. It was part of Pitt’s $240 million Victory Heights initiative, a 240,000-square-foot complex being built next to Petersen Events Center. It will include a 3,000-seat arena and performance center. The university broke ground on the project in 2023, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
The contractor, Costa Contracting, released a statement through its attorney, Dennis Blackwell, shortly after the incident on Friday.
“With heavy hearts, Costa Contracting wishes to extend their deepest condolences to the family of the woman who lost her life today,” Blackwell said.
“Costa Contracting is committed to a full investigation to determine the factors that led to this event,” he continued. “Safety remains our paramount concern and we are working with OSHA and local authorities to understand precisely what occurred.”
