The footballer uploaded photos to his Instagram account showing the wet driving conditions as traffic was crawling along the bridge in Genoa.
Just ten minutes later a section of the the Morandi bridge in Genoa collapsed. The tragedy occurred during a tropical rainstorm.
Cars dropped more than 50ft after a 200 metre section of the A10 motorway gave way.
The head of the local ambulance service reportedly said there were "dozens of dead" following the tragedy at 11.30am local time.
The 200 metre section of road fell on to a densely populated area below – an eyewitness said they saw eight or nine vehicles on the bridge when it collapsed.
Current estimates are that 35 people have so far been killed as a result of the tragic accident.
The 31-year-old player, who spent seven season playing for St Petersburg in Russia, later posted a moving tribute on Instagram.
He wrote: "I write this message for all those who are writing to me, worried about me and my family.
"We're all fine, even though we crossed that bridge exactly 10 minutes before the collapse.
"My thoughts are with all the families of the victims, it's not possible for a bridge on a motorway to collapse like this – NOT POSSIBLE!
"We need to do something for this country, people flee because of these things. We need security, we need someone to do something. This is disgusting!"
Criscito has been capped 24 times by the Italian national team.
The Morandi Bridge is situated in the Northern Italian port city of Genoa.
It runs across the Polcevera stream and is part of the A10 toll motorway.
The bridge was designed by engineer Riccardo Morandi in 1967.
It ran between the districts of Sampierdarena and Cornigliano in Genoa.
It is not yet certain what caused the collapse – police linked it to what they called a violent cloudburst.
However it has also been reported as a structural failure – the bridge connects Italy to France and was busier than usual due to Ferragosto (a major Italian holiday on August 15).
The bridge was also reportedly undergoing maintenance by Autostrade per l'Italia at the time of the collapse.
WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR:
- At least 35 people are known to have died
- 'Many' more have been seriously injured
- Four people have been rescued alive
- 35 cars and three heavy vehicles involved
- A 200m stretch of the road collapsed
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PM Giuseppe Conte is heading to Genoa
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