Bridge Falls Into Mississippi River

[DoctorDoom]

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - The entire span of a four-lane interstate bridge over the Mississippi River collapsed during evening rush hour Wednesday, sending vehicles, tons of concrete and twisted metal crashing into the water.

The Interstate 35W bridge, which spans between Minneapolis and St. Paul, was under construction when it broke into several huge sections. Dozens of vehicles were scattered and stacked on top of each other amid the rubble.Bridge Falls Into Mississippi River (http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8QOI8VG0&show_article=1)

God be with the victims and the rescuers.

[Suzie]

It sure doesn't look good. 2 dead so far I heard. I will be amazed if there are not more, but I pray there won't be.

[dajoga]

A tragic situation indeed, but I flipped over to CNN and they already were talking about legal issues--as was Allen Colmes. Is that all the 'rats think about when tragedy strikes is whose at fault so litigation can start?

Also, at every press conference, we'll be inundated by stupid questions from stupid reporters.

BTW, lots of muslims in that area--they better hope it wasn't a terrorist act or their lives will become more complicatied than they are now.

[Suzie]

I figure this was something structural. There doesn't appear to be any explosive marks on the pavement. They would have probably had to use a car bomb to do anything as damaging as this, unless it's a construction crew member who could put something underneath. But if they were working on it daily that seems far fetched.

[BabyBeastie]

...unlike the support beams that fell out here yesterday morning in Oroville. All of the reports kept calling it a "bridge collapse," when in fact it was just a bunch of steel beams (false work) that were put in place to support the concrete forms.

[dajoga]

I just found out that a nephew of mine went over that bridge 10 minutes b/4 it fell.

[Timberwolf]

I'm just glad my family members who live there are OK. Then again, I've not heard from and aunt & uncle, yet.

My prayers go out to the survivors and to the families of the victims.

[Beowulf]

BTW, lots of muslims in that area--they better hope it wasn't a terrorist act or their lives will become more complicatied than they are now.

It was stuctural but no doubt the Arab world is claiming it's "God's Vengeance" much like they said of the last space shuttle disaster.

[Riverboat]

I just found out that a nephew of mine went over that bridge 10 minutes b/4 it fell.If I knew I had done the same, I'd cement my knees to the ground for a week in thanksgiving.

[Suzie]

<iframe src="http://us.video.aol.com/snag/?pmmsid=1951579&autoplay=0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" width="320" height="372"></iframe>

[Rhino]

Rush Hour Bridge Collapse Kills 7 in Minneapolis
Thursday, August 02, 2007

MINNEAPOLIS — An interstate bridge jammed with rush-hour traffic suddenly broke into huge sections and collapsed into the Mississippi River Wednesday, pitching dozens of cars 60 feet into the water and killing at least seven people.

By 1 a.m. Thursday, Hennepin County Sheriff Rich Stanek said all search efforts had been called off for the night and that searchers did not expect to find any survivors.

"It's dark, it's not safe with the currents in the water and the concrete and rebar," he said. "At this point it is a recovery effort."

Minneapolis Fire Chief Jim Clack said 60 people were taken to area hospitals for treatment and that the death toll could rise.

Rescuers called off the search as nightfall made it too dangerous to search the waters, which were filled with chucks of the mangled bridge and at least 50 vehicles in the water.

"We think there are several more vehicles in the river we can't see yet," Clack said, adding that the likelihood of finding survivors was slim.

Dr. Joseph Clinton, emergency medical chief at Hennepin County Medical Center, said his hospital treated 28 injured people — including six who were in critical condition.

Clinton said at least one of the victims had drowned.

The car she was riding in landed on top of a smaller car but did not fall into the water. She said her nephew yelled, "'It's an earthquake!' and then we realized the bridge was collapsing."

"There were two lanes of traffic, bumper to bumper, at the point of the collapse. Those cars did go into the river," said Minneapolis Police Lt. Amelia Huffman. "At this point there is nothing to suggest that this was anything other than a structural collapse."...http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,291797,00.html

On the news this morning, they were saying 9 dead and 60 wounded, with the numbers expected to climb.

Click here to the see live report on MyFoxTwinCities.com. (http://media.myfoxtwincities.com/livestream/web_channel/index.htm)

Teens Describe Bridge Rescue (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,291797,00.html#)

Witnesses Describe Bridge Collapse (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,291797,00.html#)

Officials, Lawmakers to Tour Scene of Tragedy (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,291806,00.html)

Bridge Had Passed Last Inspection (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,291804,00.html)

[Rhino]

Aug 2, 8:34 AM EDT

Death Toll Dips to 4 in Bridge Collapse

By JON KRAWCZYNSKI
Associated Press Writers

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Authorities lowered the death toll from an interstate bridge collapse to four Thursday, but warned the final number could change as divers comb the twisted steel and chunks of concrete that crashed into the Mississippi River.

Police Lt. Amelia Huffman said: "This morning, the medical examiner's office only has four sets of remains." Initial reports of seven people killed were based on the best estimates authorities had Wednesday night, she said.

The eight-lane Interstate 35W bridge, a major Minneapolis artery, was in the midst of being repaired and two lanes in each direction were closed when the bridge buckled during evening rush hour Wednesday.

Crews planned to resume their cleanup and recovery work Thursday morning. Fire Chief Jim Clack said officials didn't expect to find any more survivors.

More than 20 families gathered in a hotel ballroom early Thursday, waiting for word on loved ones who couldn't be located.

"I've never wanted to see my brother so much in my life," said Kristi Foster, who went to an information center set up at a Holiday Inn looking for her brother Kirk. She hadn't had contact with her brother or his girlfriend, Krystle Webb, since the previous night.

More than 60 people were injured and as many as 50 vehicles were in the river, many of their occupants having scrambled to shore. The collapse did not appear to be terrorism-related.

Some injured people were carried up the riverbank, while emergency workers tended to others on the ground and some jumped into the water to look for survivors. Fire and black smoke rose from the wreckage....http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/M/MINNESOTA_BRIDGE_COLLAPSE?SITE=FLTAM&SECTION=US

[Wyatt_Junker]

I know why the bridge suddenly lept into the water. It was suicidal. Tired of all them cars running over its back and treating it like shit.

[Rhino]

Did anybody see the Mothman?

[Wyatt_Junker]

Did anybody see the Mothman?


Yes.

That's what I thought of, too.

I liked that movie.

[Suzie]

He better not leave WV, that's one of the few tourist attractions we thought up ... err I mean "found". Yeah ... that's it FOUND!!!

[Rhino]

Video of the bridge collapsing:

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2007/08/02/vosli.mn.i35w.bridge.collapse.side.view.cnn

[DeclinetoState]

The bridge probably collapsed as a result of global warming . . . making it all Bush's fault.

[DoctorDoom]

Prediction: within a day or two it will be politicized by the RATs: if we weren't spending billions in Iraq on Bush's war, there would be more money for bridge inspection and maintenance.

There is no cesspool so deep that RATs will not skindive to the bottom looking for chunks to fling at Bush.

[Suzie]

Bridge collapse points to infrastructure falling short (http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A9j8eu7BnrJGPz0BdAnQtDMD;_ylu=X3oDMTBjZGM1ZGE 1BHBvcwM1BHNlYwNzcg--/SIG=145kdnttt/EXP=1186197569/**http%3a//www.marketwatch.com/enf/rss.asp%3fguid=%257B87558C23-CC1B-4C81-9F6C-77AD19FDF011%257D%26siteid=rss%26rss=1) http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/us/sch/bn/nw2.gif (http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A9j8eu7BnrJGPz0BdQnQtDMD;_ylu=X3oDMTBjZGM1ZGE 1BHBvcwM1BHNlYwNzcg--/SIG=145kdnttt/EXP=1186197569/**http%3a//www.marketwatch.com/enf/rss.asp%3fguid=%257B87558C23-CC1B-4C81-9F6C-77AD19FDF011%257D%26siteid=rss%26rss=1)
Market Watch - Aug 02 10:46 AMLONDON (MarketWatch) -- There's no doubt that the fatal collapse of an interstate-highway bridge across the Mississippi River in Minneapolis will prompt a series of investigations into the state of U.S. transportation infrastructure.

[DeclinetoState]

Six years ago independent engineers at the University of Minnesota warned that (http://www.sctimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070802/NEWS01/108020061/1009) the I-35 bridge had “evidence of fatigue on the main truss and floor trusses and said the bridge might collapse if part of the truss gave way under the eight-lane freeway.”

In a brazen CYA move last night, Gov. Pawlenty (Bush Republican (http://politicalwire.com/archives/2005/10/20/pawlenty_sticks_with_bush.html)) said 2005 and 2006 bridge studies indicated there were "no structural deficits" in the I-35 bridge.

But today the president's spokesperson said the report actually said there were structural deficits. A 2005 federal inspection rated the bridge 50 (http://www.kare11.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=261186) on a scale of 120 for structural stability, and the Bush administration said it was up to state officials to take corrective action. (http://wcco.com/topstories/local_story_214104352.html)

The Minnesota Legislature attempted to take corrective action by passing transportation funding bills, but Pawlenty vetoed them.
Op-Ed News (http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_kathlyn__070802_gov__pawlenty_can_t_.htm)

[dajoga]

Whose fault? Karl Rove--he hired some thugs to take it down so the 24/7 news would be off any of Bush's actions.

Really, I don't get it--why 24/7 coverage? Why the monotonous, endless line of "experts" spilling their drivel about what they "think" happened, who messed up, how we should worry about how safe the bridge on our daily run is, and how we can prevent it from "ever happening again."

You'd think this happens every few months from the hysteria over this! Being on a bridge when it collapses is at or near the bottom of my worry list.

[DoctorDoom]

The RATs vampires are utterly predictable. From post #19:

Prediction: within a day or two it will be politicized by the RATs: if we weren't spending billions in Iraq on Bush's war, there would be more money for bridge inspection and maintenance.From an MRC CyberAlert emailing in my inbox this morning.

1. CNN's Cafferty Exploits Bridge Collapse to Stigmatize Iraq War

CNN's Jack Cafferty on Thursday exploited the Minneapolis bridge collapse tragedy to take a shot at the Iraq war as he proposed the money "pouring into Iraq" could be better spent "at home," and featured an e-mailer who complained spending on infrastructure is "a drop in the bucket compared to $450 billion wasted in Iraq." Cafferty's question during the 7pm EDT hour of The Situation Room: "In light of the Minnesota bridge collapse, how could the U.S. better spend the $2 billion a week that we're pouring into Iraq here at home?" Cafferty later decided to showcase an e-mail response from Steven in Hawaii who sarcastically suggested: "Just identify all of America's infrastructure as Taliban, or Islamic extremists or gay marriage proponents and presto all the money in the federal budget will be thrown at it to 'attack' the problem!"The bodies aren't all yet recovered and that contemptible son of a bitch is exploting the tragedy for political gain. The libeRATs truly are subhuman scum.

If the world were made free of them, I would consider it no more of a loss than the extermination of cockroaches. They pollute the planet by their very existence.

[DoctorDoom]

Really, I don't get it--why 24/7 coverage?Media overkill. It's SOP, particularly when it can be manipulated for political gain.

[dajoga]

an e-mailer who complained spending on infrastructure is "a drop in the bucket compared to $450 billion wasted in Iraq."

Yeah, the cost of 9/11 was just "a drop in the bucket" compared to bridge failures in the last decade.

[Longhorn_Platinum]

:unsmile: Wow, no kidding. If we ignore the terrorist threat while we fix bridges, the bridges will collapse for a different reason.

[The_Elucidator]

:unsmile: Wow, no kidding. If we ignore the terrorist threat while we fix bridges, the bridges will collapse for a different reason.

Well, that will be Bush's fault also... :rolleyes:

[Rhino]

Feds Discover Possible Design Problems in Collapsed Minneapolis Bridge
Thursday, August 09, 2007

MINNEAPOLIS — Investigators say possible design flaws have been discovered in a Minneapolis bridge that collapsed into the Mississippi River on Aug. 1, killing five people and leaving eight still missing.

Federal officials have raised concern over the design of gusset plates — steel plates that tie steel beams together — and said they are working to verifying the loads and stresses on the beams. It raises suspicions over whether the material may have been too weak or the appropriate loads were miscalculated during the bridge's construction, which was completed in 1967.

Following the report, U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters cautioned states Wednesday to consider the additional weight placed on bridges during construction or repair projects.

"Given the questions being raised by the NTSB, it is vital that states remain mindful of the extra weight construction projects place on bridges," she said in a statement.

Officials from the Minnesota Department of Transportation wouldn't comment on the significance of the gussets in the bridge's collapse.

Gary Peterson, the state’s assistant bridge engineer, told the New York Times that previous decades of inspections on the Interstate 35W bridge raised on red flags about gusset plates....http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,292648,00.html

[Rhino]

7th Body Pulled From Mississippi River As Feds Discover Possible Design Problems in Collapsed Bridge
Thursday, August 09, 2007

MINNEAPOLIS — Searchers found two more bodies Thursday in the wreckage of the collapsed Mississippi River bridge, bringing the death toll to seven, with at least six more people still missing, authorities said.

Crews have been searching the site for the past week for eight people reported missing in the Aug. 1 collapse.

Dave Hayhoe, the police homicide unit commander, announced the recoveries ahead of a briefing on the investigation. He said the bodies were recovered by divers, but gave no other information.

"Right now the first priority is notifying the families," Hayhoe said.

Before Thursday, five people had been confirmed dead in the collapse, with at least eight others missing and presume dead.

The latest victims weren't immediately identified, and age and gender were not released. Those reported missing include a mother and her young daughter, two other women and four men....http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,292648,00.html

[Rhino]

Pigeon Dung Contributed to Minneapolis Bridge Collapse
Wednesday, August 22, 2007

ST. PAUL, Minn. — Pounded and strained by heavy traffic and weakened by missing bolts and cracking steel, the failed Interstate 35W bridge over the Mississippi River also faced a less obvious enemy: Birds, specifically pigeons.

Inspectors began documenting the buildup of pigeon dung on the span near downtown Minneapolis two decades ago.

Experts say the corrosive guano deposited all over the span's framework helped the steel beams rust faster.

Although investigators have yet to identify the cause of the bridge's Aug. 1 collapse, which killed at least 13 people and injured about 100, the pigeon problem is one of many factors that dogged the structure....http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,294153,00.html