Dump truck collides with railway bridge in Beechview, causing even more traffic problems near Route 51

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - A railway bridge was hit near a busy area of Beechview on Friday morning. 

The dump truck collided with the trestle near the intersection of Crane Avenue and Route 51, knocking it off of its mooring and now they're waiting for a crane to come and take it down. Crane Avenue is closed between Route 51 and Dagmar Avenue is closed, the city said. 

Mayor Ed Gainey's office said the crash happened Friday morning or overnight and the dump truck may have hit the underside of the train bridge. They added that it was not a city-owned vehicle and now the railroad company is assessing the damage. 

Sources told KDKA they were alerted to the issue by someone doing a safety check on the railway overnight. They said that one of the two bridges was not hit and they'll be taking down the older bridge. 

It's expected to take about 4-5 hours to set up the crane and then another 2-3 hours to take the bridge down. Finally, it will take yet another 4-5 hours to disassemble the crane. 

The crane and the crews are currently en route and are expected to arrive within the next hour. 

In the meantime, Duquesne Light was on the scene to turn off the power so crews could put up the crane safely. 

The crash happened at a time when PennDOT had closed off the section of Route 51 between Crane Avenue and Woodruff to demolish the bridge by Woodruff at the bottom of Mount Washington which has been a headache for drivers.