Public Bus Removed From Building, Days After It Became Stuck
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- After assessing the situation for nearly a week, Miami-Dade Transportation Department workers finally removed a public bus stuck in a building in Little Haiti.
Crews worked diligently for most of the day securing the structure and finally removing the bus at around 6 p.m.
Earlier this week, engineers assessed the structural integrity of the building to determine the safest way to remove the bus without bringing down the building.
The problem had to do with the support pillars in the front of the building being compromised. The bus had been providing the support that kept the building up.
Luis Espinosa, with the county's transportation department, had said Thursday afternoon they would begin the process of pulling the bus out. He said it would be a slow process. The bus would be moved a bit and a support beams be put in. The bus then would be moved in small increments so support columns could be put in to sustain the weight of the structure.
The bus slammed into the building on NW 2nd Avenue at 54th Street on Sunday after it was involved in a collision with a pickup truck. Witnesses said the pickup truck ran a red light, crashing into the bus and causing it to slam into the Omega Fashion store.
Arsenese Omega owns the building, he's had a clothing business inside for the past 40 years.
It's tough for Omega to watch what's happening. He was hoping to sell the building and use the money to send his daughter to medical school.
For now, he says he will just pray there will be another way he can provide.
"No matter how strong you are there will be a time you have to come to your knees. It's really bothering me, eating me inside," he said.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to help Omega with expenses related to his business. Click here if you would like to help.
