Bridge falls into Mississippi River

[DavidMn]

Originally Posted by irishgrl

{{hugs to you, my friend}}

You know, I've sat here all night thinking what is really important in this life. It jars you. Thats the best way I can explain it.

[irishgrl]

Something similar happened in MY neck of the woods (which also made national news...)

oroville highway collapses

OROVILLE, Calif. (AP) - Authorities say two people were injured after a bridge under construction near Oroville collapsed this morning.

The California Highway Patrol says one of the injured was a FedEx driver who was trapped in his vehicle after the collapse about 7:30 this morning at the intersection of State Route 149 and State Route 70 in Butte County.

The location is about an hour north of Sacramento.

A spokesman for the C-H-P says a big beam went across part of the truck, but missed the cab. The driver was flown by a medical helicopter to a hospital in Chico with what was described as major injuries.

A construction worker was also injured. The C-H-P didn't have details on the second person injured, but said the worker suffered moderate injuries.

The highway patrol isn't sure when the highway will reopen.

Construction crews are trying to remove and stabilize the collapsed beams and other steelwork that collapsed.

Motorists are being told to take detours using State Route 162.



©2007 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

[kathy1]

it is sad i was watching the news most of the night.

[mikeschmike]

http://www.danwhittaker.com/35w/collapse.htm

Here are a few pictures, showing before and after pictures of the area. They say that the bottom of the bridge was 65 feet from the water, but it is obviously much higher from the actual roadway. Some good news is that the officials have lowered the number of deaths to four. They had originally said that seven had been killed from the collapse.

[skcin]

Glad you're OK, Mike!

Like David said, it really makes you think.

[kathy1]

i am glad you are ok.

[strandinthewind]

[Sarah]

that **** is crazy, strand. holy cow. i hadn't seen footage of the actual collapse yet.

as a side note, one of my story assignments today was to gather information about bridge inspections locally. interestingly enough, the state department of transportation has been instructed not to give out any of that information. shady much? i'm still investigating, and exhausting my contacts in the state capitol. i bet the results won't be pretty, because TN has a history of misusing its money.

[DrummerDeanna]

Originally Posted by Sarah

that **** is crazy, strand. holy cow. i hadn't seen footage of the actual collapse yet.

as a side note, one of my story assignments today was to gather information about bridge inspections locally. interestingly enough, the state department of transportation has been instructed not to give out any of that information. shady much? i'm still investigating, and exhausting my contacts in the state capitol. i bet the results won't be pretty, because TN has a history of misusing its money.

We already have a plethora of those stories here - I was wondering how they'd milk this for a local angle - so one of my top stories today is how bridges in Colorado are in need of repair - but there's not enough money for the repairs. oy.

[madformac]

Just seen some dude and his adopted daughters talking about his missing wife. Its really heart wrenching to watch this. I'm amazed there are any survivors after seeing that bridge come down.

[Sarah]

Originally Posted by DrummerDeanna

We already have a plethora of those stories here - I was wondering how they'd milk this for a local angle - so one of my top stories today is how bridges in Colorado are in need of repair - but there's not enough money for the repairs. oy.

In a way, I'm glad I haven't been able to get the necessary info. It's not a story I want to do anyway, to be honest... it'll just stir people up and get them talking about stuff they have no idea about anyway. Know what I mean?

My morning writer may have some attitude about not having a story to use on it at 6 AM, but his newscast is not my responsibility, so he can sit on it and spin. (Besides, I've got plenty of other stories for local use today... we've just had one army national guardsman killed by enemy fire in Iraq.. a desperate, emergency need for blood donations for all the local hospitals, and finally some drought aid. Some farmers here have lost 70 percent or more of their crops because we have a severe drought... almost 12 inches below our yearly rain totals. ) Sorry for the OT.

[princessblair]

My husband's co-worker's husband was one of those on the bridge when it collapsed. My husband said that the man was able to get out of his truck to safety.

I have driven over that bridge many times...the seriousness of the accident didn't really hit me until I got to work today and saw photos and video of the bridge collapsing. I think I'm still in a bit of shock. I can't stop thinking about all of the cars and victims trapped underneath the concrete...I live and work right on the Mississippi River and cross bridges in my area on a daily basis. I don't think I'll ever have the same trust driving over one again. My thoughts and prayers go out to those affected.

[gldstwmn]

Originally Posted by DrummerDeanna

We already have a plethora of those stories here - I was wondering how they'd milk this for a local angle - so one of my top stories today is how bridges in Colorado are in need of repair - but there's not enough money for the repairs. oy.

That's what six years under Bill Owens did for us.

[gldstwmn]

Originally Posted by madformac

Just seen some dude and his adopted daughters talking about his missing wife. Its really heart wrenching to watch this. I'm amazed there are any survivors after seeing that bridge come down.

Their mother was pronounced dead late this afternoon.

[irishgrl]

Originally Posted by skcin

Glad you're OK, Mike!

Like David said, it really makes you think.

what about David Paula??? arent you glad he's ok too???