Four ironworkers were killed and four other men were hurt when a crane erecting the East Toledo approach to the truss bridge collapsed while being repositioned.
The crane was lifting concrete sections of the roadway into place.
The cause of the tragedy is yet to be discovered.
Exponent would not comment on its involvement or the length of time it expects to spend on the case. It told Cranes Today: “We do not give out any information on any project the firm may be involved with.”
The US press are reporting that the city of Toledo and the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation have agreed to split the cost of hiring Exponent.
The firm has been in business nearly 40 years and has offices throughout the United States and overseas. It has experience investigating major US catastrophes, including the collapse of two walkways at the Kansas City Hyatt in 1981, the 1989 Exxon Valdez accident off the coast of Alaska, and the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City.