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Author Topic:   Zala Are You Okay? Worried in Aftermath of Bridge Collapse
Mirandee
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From: South of the Thumb - Taurus, Pisces, Cancer
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posted August 02, 2007 11:23 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Mirandee     Edit/Delete Message
Was worried about you when I heard the news of the bridge collapse in Minnesota. Not sure exactly what part of the state you live in but most people live in the burbs around major cities. So I am worried.

We crossed over that particular bridge less than 3 years ago. *shudder* And my son is a long distance truck driver who is in and out of Minnesota and travels over those bridges all the time. So when the news broke my first thought was of him and you, Zala.

Several Missing After Fatal Bridge Collapse
Official: 'We've Moved From Rescue To Recovery Mode'
UPDATED: 11:03 am EDT August 2, 2007

MINNEAPOLIS -- Emergency crews in Minneapolis are working on recovery and cleanup efforts at the scene of the Interstate 35W bridge that collapsed during rush hour Wednesday evening.

President George W. Bush said that the federal government will help ensure that the collapsed bridge in Minneapolis "gets rebuilt as quickly as possible."

The death toll in the collapse of the bridge spanning the Mississippi River in Minneapolis was fluctuating and surrounded by a lot of confusion.

The fire department reported seven dead overnight, with 20 people missing as of early Thursday morning. A local fire chief said that death toll was expected to climb. There were at least 80 injured, according to Dr. John Hick, of the Hennepin County Medical Center.

But early Thursday morning, Minneapolis police Lt. Amelia Huffman said the number of confirmed fatalities was lowered to four. Police Chief Tim Dolan would not give a number of fatalities, saying that was up in the air. He did say that 20-30 people were considered missing.

"At this point I think there's still some unknowns," he said

Sheriff Richard Stanek also said he would not talk about the death toll.

"We know there are dozens of injuries as well, but it's too early to speculate and make a guess. It's unfair to the families," Stanek said.

The entire span of the Interstate 35W bridge collapsed about 6:05 p.m. Wednesday where the freeway crosses the river near University Avenue.

"This is going to take a long time, this recovery," Dolan said. "We're going to have to do it slowly and safely."

Emergency responders had switched from a rescue to recovery mode around 10 p.m., officials said. It was too dark and there was too much debris to continue work in the water Wednesday night. It is possible that more survivors could be found, but the chances are slim, a fire rescue official said.

Recovery crews began work again at 6 a.m. Thursday.

A Twin Cities Red Cross official said there had been an overwhelming response from Twin Cities residents wanting to know how they could help. He said blood supplies were adequate, but more would be needed eventually for the next possible emergency.

Homeland security officials in Washington said there are no indications of a link to terrorism. Law enforcement agents went over the wreckage with bomb-sniffing dogs Wednesday night.

Dr. Joseph Clinton of the Hennepin County Medical Center gave a briefing Wednesday night.

"We had four patients who have had surgery," Clinton said.

He said six patients were critical but stable. Some of the more severely injured victims were taken to University of Minnesota hospital, and a number of children were taken to North Memorial hospital. Clinton said they were "still identifying people."

In all, at HCMC, there were six patients in critical condition, and 22 in non-critical.

One patient had surgery on his or her head, three had abdominal surgery and another had a chest injury that did not require surgery.

Most of the injuries were caused by falls and blunt force trauma, Clinton said.

Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak has spoke to reporters several times.

"This will be a tragic night before it is over," Rybak said Wednesday night.

Pawlenty said, "It is a catastrophe and we want to say to the families our hearts and prayers are with you and we are doing everything we can to respond to this emergency."

The governor said he spoke with the U.S. Secretary of Transportation, Mary E. Peters, and Speaker of the House, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, both of whom offered federal help.

Pawlenty told reporters that the bridge, built in 1967, had been inspected in both 2005 and 2006 and "no structural deficiencies were identified." The inspection team felt the bridge would not need to be replaced until 2020 or beyond. The governor confirmed that the construction taking place for the last few weeks was "minor" and "cosmetic," focusing on replacing lighting, concrete, lighting and guardrails and some work on joints.

A firefighter on the scene said everybody from the north side of the bridge was pulled from the scene alive and that at least 50 vehicles were on the bridge at the time of the incident.

The chief engineer told local reporters they were not doing any construction work on the structure of the bridge deck. Workers had been doing simple road repair on the pavement which started a month ago.

Sen. Norm Coleman, R-Minn., said there will be a full federal review of why the bridge collapsed. He spoke of a need for a "full forensic review." He said that hopefully it would not be the beginning of discoveries of other major structural flaws in the state's infrastructure.

A 2001 Minnesota Department of Transportation report looked at "fatigue cracking" on the bride and concluded:

"The bridge's deck truss has not experienced fatigue cracking, but it has many poor fatigue details on the main truss and floor truss system.

"The research helped determine that the fatigue cracking of the deck truss is not likely, which means that the bridge should not have any problems with fatigue cracking in the foreseeable future."

"Clearly we have major issues with infrastructure," Coleman told KSTP TV News in Minneapolis. "Let's get focused on that."

Coleman, along with other officials, said there was no indication from federal officials that the collapse was terrorism-related. The FBI was investigating, officials said.

"Clearly that angle also has to be checked out," Coleman said.

Emergency officials said the bridge collapse could be among the worst-ever disasters in Twin City history.

"For us, this is a big deal," Minneapolis Fire Chief Jim Clack said.

The Red Cross said it had established a phone number for the families of the victims: 612-871-7676.

Witnesses Speak
One driver whose car slid down the collapsing bridge said he was lucky his brakes were able to stop his car before going over the edge into the water. As he and other drivers got out of their vehicles and climbed up the incline, they rushed to get children off a nearby school bus.

He said the kids were "crying, screaming," as they were lifted out of the damaged bus.

Distributed by Internet Broadcasting. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Mirandee
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From: South of the Thumb - Taurus, Pisces, Cancer
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posted August 02, 2007 11:45 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Mirandee     Edit/Delete Message
So far I have not been able to reach my son by cell phone so I am really worried there. Will be a relief when he calls. Most likely he is sleeping as he does most of his driving at night to avoid rush hour traffic in and around metropolitan cities.

It is noted that the bridge was expected in 2001 by the Army Corps of Engineers who reported structual damage, what they termed "stress damage." Then Bush took office and it was not until 2005 that the bridge was inspected again and,low and behold, just like the levees in New Orleans that were ignored on repeated warnings that they needed building up and would not withstand a major hurricane so was the bridge in Minnesota ignored and beyond that, passed inspection in 2005.

Much more important to use tax payer money to wage wars in the Middle East than to repair bridges and levees and roadways in the U.S.

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fayte.m
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posted August 02, 2007 11:55 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for fayte.m     Edit/Delete Message
I hope your son calls soon!
I wrote Zala but no reply yet.

------------------
"Heaven doesn't want me and Hell is afraid I'll take over and start a rehab for the damned!"
~Judgement Must Be Balanced With Compassion~
~Do Not Seek Wealth From The Suffering, Or The Dire Needs Of Others~
~Assumption Is The Bane Of Understanding~
~ if you keep doing what you did, you'll keep getting what you got.~
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lalalinda
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posted August 02, 2007 12:04 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for lalalinda     Edit/Delete Message

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SattvicMoon
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posted August 02, 2007 12:36 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for SattvicMoon     Edit/Delete Message

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Welcome to my Home Page!

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Happy Dragon
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posted August 02, 2007 12:57 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Happy Dragon     Edit/Delete Message
last known signal from minnesotan outpost ..
subject .. 'bridge just collapsed' .. as noted via restaurant tv screen ..
rcvd. .. Thursday, August 2, 2007 5:51 AM GMT ..

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fayte.m
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From: Still out looking for Schrödinger's cat. fayte1954@hotmail.com
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posted August 02, 2007 01:08 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for fayte.m     Edit/Delete Message
Zala is OK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

------------------
"Heaven doesn't want me and Hell is afraid I'll take over and start a rehab for the damned!"
~Judgement Must Be Balanced With Compassion~
~Do Not Seek Wealth From The Suffering, Or The Dire Needs Of Others~
~Assumption Is The Bane Of Understanding~
~ if you keep doing what you did, you'll keep getting what you got.~
}><}}}(*> <*){{{><{
~~~ ~~ ~~~~ ~~~ ~~
~~~~~ ~~~ ~~~~ ~~~

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Azalaksh
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From: New Brighton, MN, USA
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posted August 02, 2007 01:24 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Azalaksh     Edit/Delete Message
We're fine, thank you all for your kind concern

Most of the city is just STUNNED -- there were a lot of hidden blessings in this tragedy though, as it could have been MUCH worse. Such as:
1. Perhaps not many are aware that there are only two seasons in Minnesota: Winter, and Road Construction -- which goes on whenever Winter is not in effect
So, this 8-lane freeway (motorway to you folks across the Pond ) was down to 1-2 lanes in each direction as there's pavement repair going on all up and down the I-35 corridor, minimizing the number of cars that *could* have been on the bridge at 6:05pm.
2. There are large and well-equipped/well-staffed hospitals several blocks from both sides of the bridge, so Emergency Medical people were on the scene for triage etc almost immediately and didn't have to transport the victims very far.
3. The Twin Cities are so close together that Saint Paul Emergency Response teams were only minutes away also, and were dispatched immediately.

I am so proud of the efforts of all the Rescue personnel, who worked in the 90-degree weather right after the collapse, then into the night, even when a thunderstorm passed thru!!! We have a lot to be thankful for, in the dedication and integrity of these people

I-35 is part of my commute, even though I work in St Paul. This morning I took an alternate surface route parallel to the freeway (along with tens of thousands of other commuters) so it was slow. The Cities have already blockaded some streets and revised some traffic lights to turn major arterials into freeways to replace the lost freeway section.

One of the fellas in the office told me the City/State/Feds will probably preserve the area for a few months as a "crime scene" so they can study every inch of the area. So far, there are no reports of any of our company's personnel injured or missing. Email went out from management first thing this morning regarding where to donate money and blood. In a week or two there'll be a benefit lunch here with games and raffles, where employees can buy tickets with the proceeds going to the Red Cross. It's just awe-inspiring to see people pull together like this to help each other -- it's one of the things that makes Minnesota a great place to live and raise kids.....

I hope you hear from your son real soon, Mirandee
And my thoughts go to all the families who lost loved ones, and still have loved ones missing.....

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Mirandee
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From: South of the Thumb - Taurus, Pisces, Cancer
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posted August 02, 2007 01:43 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Mirandee     Edit/Delete Message
So happy to hear from you Zala and know that you and your son are okay.

I still have not heard from Mark, my son. But trying not to worry too much and keep in mind that he does often sleep during the day as he preferst to drive at night. As of yesterday he was on his way from N. Carolina to Chicago and normally they do send him points west from Chicago. He can get from Michigan to N. Carolina in one day so that is why I am still worried about him even though he was in route to Chicago as of yesterday when his dad talked to him on cell phone.

Please pray that he is safe. I really hate his occupation as a mom. Especially when I know he is driving through mountains in the winter.

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AcousticGod
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posted August 02, 2007 02:32 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for AcousticGod     Edit/Delete Message
quote:
One of the fellas in the office told me the City/State/Feds will probably preserve the area for a few months as a "crime scene" so they can study every inch of the area.

Possibly, but it kind of depends on how fast they need to get working on replacing the bridge. Here in the Bay Area we recently lost a section of interchange freeway (right where the freeways converge to go over our Bay Bridge) when a tanker truck exploded. They got the repair done in record time. I'm sure conditions there are much more difficult, though.

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Mirandee
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From: South of the Thumb - Taurus, Pisces, Cancer
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posted August 02, 2007 04:32 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Mirandee     Edit/Delete Message
Heard about that on the news, AG. It is also listed under the most recent bridge and road disasters in the world.

Good news here too. And much relief!!

I just got a call from Mark and he is fine. He just woke up. Like his dad and I figured he was sleeping. He is in Cincinnati now headed for Chicago.

Mark said the trucking companies have put out an all points warning to drivers to avoid Interstate 35 W due to the bridge collapse. He told me that he got sent from N.Carolina to S. Carolina yesterday instead of heading straight to Chicago so he was in S. Carolina when the bridge collapsed.

My heart goes out to the family and loved ones of those who were killed in the bridge collapse and those who are still missing.

My husband said that he heard on the news that one of the guys who helped in the rescue efforts got a call from his girlfriend on the cell phone and she told him she was on the bridge and that it was collapsing. She is one of the people still missing.

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fayte.m
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From: Still out looking for Schrödinger's cat. fayte1954@hotmail.com
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posted August 02, 2007 04:43 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for fayte.m     Edit/Delete Message
quote:
I just got a call from Mark and he is fine
Yay Mirandee!

------------------
"Heaven doesn't want me and Hell is afraid I'll take over and start a rehab for the damned!"
~Judgement Must Be Balanced With Compassion~
~Do Not Seek Wealth From The Suffering, Or The Dire Needs Of Others~
~Assumption Is The Bane Of Understanding~
~ if you keep doing what you did, you'll keep getting what you got.~
}><}}}(*> <*){{{><{
~~~ ~~ ~~~~ ~~~ ~~
~~~~~ ~~~ ~~~~ ~~~

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Happy Dragon
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posted August 02, 2007 05:47 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Happy Dragon     Edit/Delete Message
~ Mirandee ~

good to hear your son is ok .. :-)
crossing this bridged scared the living crapp out of me ..
that newer taller structure wasn't there at the time ..
but the other two were ..
the lanes seemed to be awfully narrow ..
and the drop over the side looked .. frightening to say the least ..
( .. from a drivers perspective at .. a guess .. 9ft above road level )
so if charleston is on his run .. he'll might be familiar with it .. :-)

.. Cooper River Bridge, Charleston, SC ..

.. above charleston pic from joanperry.smugmug dot com ..

.. closer view of the older two cooper river bridges ..

pic from .. 'en.structurae.de' ..


lots of structural theories on the news this eve. regarding the minnesotan bridge ..
classed as 'stucturaly impaired' since a couple of years back ..
something to do with one of the river bed pylons ..

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Azalaksh
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From: New Brighton, MN, USA
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posted August 02, 2007 05:56 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Azalaksh     Edit/Delete Message
Here's the video of the actual bridge collapse, from a security-camera at a riverside business.....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjCic0YlJwQ

Mirandee ~

I'm very relieved to hear that Mark is OK

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26taurus
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posted August 02, 2007 06:02 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for 26taurus     Edit/Delete Message

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juniperb
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posted August 02, 2007 06:33 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for juniperb     Edit/Delete Message
Yep Happy Dragon, that bridge is the scariest I`ve ever been on. That curve in it and the narrow lanes are terrifying. That from me who cross`s Mi`s Mackinaw Bridge, Blue water Bridge and Superior Bridge frequently.

prayers sent

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What we do for ourselves dies with us. What we do for others and the world is immortal"~

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Bluemoon
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posted August 02, 2007 06:39 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Bluemoon     Edit/Delete Message
I am glad that you are yours are safe and well, zala and mirandee.

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Solane Star
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posted August 02, 2007 08:56 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Solane Star     Edit/Delete Message
So glad to hear you & yours are safe & well also!!!!SENDING LOVE & PEACE OF MIND PRAYER'S!!!!

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Node
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posted August 02, 2007 09:36 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Node     Edit/Delete Message

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Mirandee
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From: South of the Thumb - Taurus, Pisces, Cancer
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posted August 03, 2007 02:53 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Mirandee     Edit/Delete Message
OMG That is the scariest looking bridge that I ever saw, HD. It looks like a truckers nightmare with those narrow lanes. This also comes from a veteran of crossing over the Mackinaw and Blue Water Bridges. Not to mention the Ambassador Bridge going from Detroit to Windsor,Ontario. I will ask Mark if he has ever crossed it.

I have a bridge phobia to begin with. I think the collapse of this bridge in Minnesota just heightened all those fears. I can ride over a bridge as a passenger but the times in my life when I have had to drive over one I tense up, actually freeze up is more like it. It's weird.

It was very windy and they had high wind caution warnings out on my last trip across the Mackinaw Bridge. It was not a pleasant trip across at all for me. I wanted to get out of the car and kiss the ground when we got to the other side. They sometimes close that bridge if the winds are too high because there have been people blown over the side of the bridge in high winds. That is not only the 3rd longest suspencion bridge in the world which does sway in the wind, it is also a very high bridge which makes my fear of heights kick into gear too. They have people on both sides who will drive the cars of people who are afraid to drive across that bridge. Though it's really a beautiful view from atop that bridge. Many times just concentrating on the view and beauty of it calms me down while riding across that bridge.

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Mirandee
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From: South of the Thumb - Taurus, Pisces, Cancer
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posted August 03, 2007 03:02 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Mirandee     Edit/Delete Message
Here is a list of the bridges that DOT is planning on expecting in the U.S. that have same structure as the bridge on I 35 in Minnesota.

S. Carolina only has one of those type of bridges. I wonder if it the one you showed us, HD.

They are going to list the names of the bridges sometime today ( Friday ) I am betting that one of the 14 same type of bridges in Michigan is the Blue Water bridge.

I am not sure how safe either the Blue Water Bridge which connects Port Huron, MI to Sarnia, Ontario or the Ambassador Bridge connecting Detroit to Windsor, Ontario are. Both of those bridges have been around as long as I have so they are pretty old.

DOT List Of Similar Bridges In U.S.

The following is a list of states and the number of similar bridges that the U.S. Department of Transportation has asked be inspected:

The highest number is found in Ohio with 187.

The DOT is working on a list of which bridges are in question and is expected to publish that list Friday.

Alabama 18
Alaska 7
Arizona 8
Arkansas 11
California 59
Colorado 6
Connecticut 6
Delaware 2
District of Columbia 0
Florida 1
Georgia 2
Hawaii 5
Idaho 4
Illinois 7
Indiana 10
Iowa 9
Kansas 15
Kentucky 11
Louisiana 3
Maine 6
Maryland 10
Massachusetts 19
Michigan 14
Minnesota 6
Mississippi 4
Missouri 8
Montana 11
Nebraska 4
Nevada 2
New Hampshire 3
New Jersey 8
New Mexico 7
New York 33
North Carolina 2
North Dakota 0
Ohio 187
Oklahoma 14
Oregon 38
Pennsylvania 47
Rhode Island 0
South Carolina 1
South Dakota 6
Tennessee 7
Texas 25
Utah 3
Vermont 8
Virginia 13
Washington State 32
West Virginia 31
Wisconsin 15
Wyoming 3
Puerto Rico 5

Maybe one of those bridges on the list in Alaska is the Bridge to Nowhere which wouldn't matter to anyone but the Republican who had it built with tax payers money to connect to his house.

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Mirandee
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From: South of the Thumb - Taurus, Pisces, Cancer
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posted August 03, 2007 03:17 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Mirandee     Edit/Delete Message
Zala that is a very frightening video of how fast that bridge went down.

One of the drivers on the bridge said that he ran his car into a wall because he knew he could not stop in time if he braked and would have gone into the river. He relied on his air bags. Good thinking. I think I would have risked dying that way in preference to drowning.

This video made me cry. It shows the heroism of this 20 year old kid in getting the kids on that school bus to safety. Stories like this and the many coming out of Minnesota show the goodness in people that always come out in times of disasters. People risking their own lives to help others. Not only that the other drivers on the bridge assisted him in getting the kids to safety. As did the woman who was driving the bus. She did not leave the bus until all the kids were out.
www.clickondetroit.com/video/13807121/index.html?taf=det

Thank you all for your thoughts and concern for Mark.

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fayte.m
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From: Still out looking for Schrödinger's cat. fayte1954@hotmail.com
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posted August 03, 2007 08:28 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for fayte.m     Edit/Delete Message
I avoid bridges as much as possible and take other routes if I can.
If folks knew how bridges were made,
the aluminum and rubber wobble-flex
and porous patched weak concrete pillions with not enough steel rebar,
with barely adequate footers, constructed by usually the lowest bidder, they would be very afraid of most bridges.

------------------
"Heaven doesn't want me and Hell is afraid I'll take over and start a rehab for the damned!"
~Judgement Must Be Balanced With Compassion~
~Do Not Seek Wealth From The Suffering, Or The Dire Needs Of Others~
~Assumption Is The Bane Of Understanding~
~ if you keep doing what you did, you'll keep getting what you got.~
}><}}}(*> <*){{{><{
~~~ ~~ ~~~~ ~~~ ~~
~~~~~ ~~~ ~~~~ ~~~

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Solane Star
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From: Ontario, Canada
Registered: Jun 2005

posted August 03, 2007 08:44 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Solane Star     Edit/Delete Message
OH MY!!!

I cry two when he said, their like my brother & sister's. I've worked with them for 5yrs now and their like apart of me!!! I come every day to just see their SMILES!!!!

LOVE & BLESSINGS!!!

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Lialei
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From: blank canvas
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posted August 03, 2007 09:57 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Lialei     Edit/Delete Message

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