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Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-Fla.) joined Shepard Smith Thursday afternoon to react to a bridge collapse on a major Miami highway that reportedly left at least several people dead and multiple vehicles trapped underneath the sprawling wreckage.

Officials said at a news conference Thursday afternoon that eight victims were transported to nearby hospitals, but further details were not immediately clear.

Search and rescue operations are under way in the area, and authorities are using dogs to search for anyone who may be trapped underneath the rubble.

"The human aspect of this is just so painful. Imagine someone whose child or parent or friend did not get home because they were killed by a falling bridge," Curbelo said. "It is just unthinkable, unspeakable, and we really ask the entire country to pray for these families and our community."

He said he spoke to Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao, who assured him that the federal government will do everything in its power to assist and get to the bottom of why the bridge collapsed.

The bridge, projected to be finished in early 2019, was set to link the university’s Modesto A. Maidique Campus to the town of Sweetwater, where an estimated 4,000 students live, the Miami Herald reported. The bridge, a $14.2 million project, was installed on Saturday, with many celebrating the new construction.

"The federal government does indeed need to help us get to the bottom of what happened and if people must be held accountable -- which I assume there will be people who made mistakes, errors in judgment -- federal government needs to be there to help us reach those determinations and then see how we proceed," Curbelo said.

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