Bridge Collapse Not An Isolated Incident

Transportation Correspondent Nancy Cordes Reports On Other Recent Bridge Collapses

(CBS/AP)  Today the National Transportation Safety Board begins its investigation of the fatal Minneapolis bridge collapse.

CBS News transportation correspondent Nancy Cordes reported on the previous instances that the NTSB has to draw upon as they conduct their analysis of why the bridge came apart.

Bridge collapses often take place while they are still under the construction process. One bridge in East Chicago killed 12 construction worked in 1982.

But there have been major collapses, like Minneapolis, that had dozens, and sometimes hundreds, of cars crossing when the bridge went down.

One example is the Sunshine Skyway. In 1980, a freighter rammed into this Tampa, Fla. steel cantilever bridge. A large segment of the bridge, along with a Greyhound bus and six cars, plummeted into Tampa Bay, killing 35 people.

In 1983, a 100-foot section of the Mianis River Bridge in Connecticut, a part of I-95, plunged 70 feet into the water. The failure of crucial holding pins was blamed for the collapse that caused three deaths.

Perhaps the deadliest bridge collapse occurred in 1967. The Silver Bridge connecting West Virginia and Ohio gave way during rush hour and tumbled into the Ohio River, killing 46 people. The cause was eventually determined to be corrosion.

Steel corrosion on bridges is still a major concern. Infrastructure experts worry that thousands of American bridges are dangerously outdated and overburdened. In 2006, approximately one-fifth of interstate bridges were rated as deficient, either structurally deficient or obsolete.

Overall, one-quarter of all bridges in the U.S. are considered structurally deficient, and 80,000 bridges across the country need some sort of reconstruction or rebuilding.

Other recent bridge collapses include:

July 31, 2007: A highway overpass under construction in Oroville, Calif., collapses, crushing a delivery truck and seriously injuring a construction worker who fell 50 feet.

April 2007: A section of freeway that funnels traffic off the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge collapses after a gasoline tanker truck overturns and erupts into flames. Only the truck driver is injured.

September 2006: A bridge collapse in Quebec, Canada, kills five people.

November 2005: A section of a highway bridge under construction in southern Spain collapses, killing six people.

May 2003: A tractor-trailer slams into a bridge support on Interstate 80 in western Nebraska, sending the bridge crashing down onto the truck and killing the driver.

May 2002: A 500-foot section of a bridge spanning the Arkansas River in Webbers Falls, Okla., collapses and kills 14 people after a barge hits it.

July, August 2002: Two bridges in central China collapse, killing a combined 19 people.

September 2001: The Queen Isabella Causeway in Texas collapses after a tow boat captain loses control of a string of barges and currents drive them into a bridge support. Eight people die when their vehicles plummet 85 feet into the channel.

March 2001: A bridge collapse in Lisbon, Portugal, causes a tour bus to plunge into a river, killing more than 50 people.

June 1998: A train traveling from Munich to Hamburg derails in Hanover, Germany, leading to the deaths of 101 people. Sections of the train flip off the tracks, causing the overpass to collapse.

April 5, 1987: A bridge on the New York State Thruway near Amsterdam, N.Y., gives way, killing 10 people.

© MMVII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Add a Comment See all 11 Comments

by random_radar August 2, 2007 4:16 PM PDT

Unfortunately, bridges collapsing is getting to be a routine problem. Too bad we spend all our money rebuilding Iraq.

Reply to this comment

by august31950 August 2, 2007 6:27 PM PDT

The world was literally built on the basis of accepting the lowest bid on contracts and paying out the lowest wages and benefits possible to employees. How many innocent lives have these principles cost? Does this apply here?

Reply to this comment

by rsmphd August 2, 2007 6:28 PM PDT

Ironically this week the house and senate have been working on earmark reform and curtailment of the pork in politics. That the taxpayers have to
see given to dead end projects of the Washington Elitists.

Congress this week is going to pass a bill with the earmark for 223 million for the Bridge to nowhere: Alaska's Gravina Island(Population of less than 50 residents)that will be connected to
Ketchakan (population 8,000) by a bridge as long
as the Golden Gate, and higher than the Brooklyn Bridge. Yet the bridges and infrastructure of the US highways that have millions of travelers will be left unattended.

The I 35W bridge could use those funds to start the cleanup and building of that bridge and maybe if they can find the restraint not to spend it all they could fix some of the other bridges in
the interstate system that are in dire need of repair.

Reply to this comment

by ubrew12 August 2, 2007 7:42 PM PDT

Article: "Overall, one-quarter of all bridges in the U.S. are considered structurally deficient, and 80,000 bridges across the country need some sort of reconstruction or rebuilding."

According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, American infrastructure is now graded a D-, and needs a $1.6 trillion infusion immediately just to bring it up to code. This infrastructure includes bridges, roads, sewers, levees, dams, etc.

I believe that the country that built all this stuff, and had no trouble maintaining it, ended with the Reagan administration and has never resurfaced. Since then, the roll call has been tax cuts, massive debt, and massive defense spending. After 30 years, this means we've spent our Federal revenue on Iraq-style engagements abroad, Chinese clothing, and third mansions in the tropics for the rich. If taxes are raised now, it goes into servicing the debt and paying for the Boomers retirement.

Expect alot more bridges and levees to fail. And forget about nationalized healthcare. As Reagan would say, 'lift yourself up by your bootstraps' (and if you want to get across the Mississippi... row). LOL.

Reply to this comment

by glenn194513 August 2, 2007 9:53 PM PDT

I seem to remember a section of I-95 NE of NYC falling in the early/mid 1980's but it's not listed in the article.

Reply to this comment

by sandycat2 August 3, 2007 12:47 AM PDT

Perhaps our government should forget about giving so many billions in foreign aid to the rest of the world and keep the money at home and use it to help the American people.

Reply to this comment

by l8c6 August 3, 2007 3:08 AM PDT

Lets hear from the economists and business leaders. Afterall, america is best run like a business. That's what the neo con boys have been telling us for at least 25 years.

Does it make sense to repair an old antiquated factory or operate it past the time its return becomes inadequate and no longer justifies paying for the cost of its overhead?

Same with america. It's getting old. The right wing corporatists elected to minimize government bureacracy like the U.S Army Corp of Engineers have underfunded such repair like good business people knowing it just doesn't make good business sense to keep patching an old antiquated machine.

So, I guess like good global entrepreneurs the robber barons will be investing in Dubai.

Reply to this comment

by coffeehead-2009 August 3, 2007 6:27 AM PDT

Perhaps our government should forget about giving so many billions in foreign aid to the rest of the world and keep the money at home and use it to help the American people.
Posted by sandycat2


ummmm---

CBS News
"Foreign Companies Buy U.S. Roads, Bridges":

"Foreign companies are buying up American highways and bridges built by U.S. taxpayers.

"Roads and bridges built by U.S. taxpayers are starting to be sold off, and so far foreign-owned companies are doing the buying.

"On a single day in June, an Australian-Spanish partnership paid $3.8 billion to lease the Indiana Toll Road. An Australian company bought a 99-year lease on Virginia's Pocahontas Parkway, and Texas officials decided to let a Spanish-American partnership build and run a toll road from Austin to Seguin for 50 years.

"Few people know that the tolls from the U.S. side of the tunnel between Detroit and Windsor, Canada, go to a subsidiary of an Australian company -- which also owns a bridge in Alabama...

"Last year, [Chicago] sold a 99-year lease on the eight-mile Chicago Skyway for $1.83 billion. The buyer was the same consortium that leased the Indiana Toll Road -- Macquarie Infrastructure Group of Sydney, Australia, and Cintra Concesiones de Infraestructuras de Transporte of Madrid, Spain...

http://209.85.165.104/search?q=cache:6uMQJZp_E4cJ:www.whiskeyandgunpowder.com/Archives/2006/20060719.html+taxpayer money foreign owned roads&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=5&gl=us

Reply to this comment

by coffeehead-2009 August 3, 2007 6:45 AM PDT

Before we invest in repairs....
we should
1. see if we own it.
2. see if we are selling it.

It's not like selling a house - we won't get gain any money - only lose MORE.


What's in it for the foreign companies? Huge potential profits. Gigantic, steady profits. Toll roads are an incredible asset class. They're often monopolies. They can support debt, since they provide a recurring guaranteed revenue stream that is likely to rise over time, as more people take to the roads and tolls increase. According to Cintra, the Indiana Toll Road generated $96 million in revenues in 2005, and Cintra expects a 12.5 percent internal rate of return on its investment. The heavy lifting has already been done: The state or federal governments have acquired the land and rights of way, built the roads and maintained them for years, and enacted toll increases. All the private companies have to do is deliver cash upfront, maintain the roads, and collect the windfall. The buyers can also increase their profits by making toll roads run more efficiently with technology. After assuming control of the Chicago Skyway, the Cintra-Macquarie consortium installed electronic toll equipment on some lanes. And by refinancing nimbly, companies can cash out. Last year%u2014just seven months into its 99-year lease%u2014Cintra announced that it had recovered 44 percent of its initial investment in the Chicago road through refinancing.

Reply to this comment

by AgentGGG August 3, 2007 6:54 AM PDT

The listing of all the various bridges that collapsed, without consideration of the origin of the incident, obscures the bigger issue of infrastructure maintenance. It is fundamentally not an issue of maintenance if a ship hits a bridge or if a gas tanker explodes and causes a bridge to melt.

Reply to this comment

by rushlimpdrug August 3, 2007 10:13 AM PDT

Fix this bridge after fixing the Iraq bridge.
They blew theirs up so it gets priority.
We didn't properly maintain ours so it is our fault.
Can we import a bridge from china?

Reply to this comment

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[random_radar]

Unfortunately, bridges collapsing is getting to be a routine problem. Too bad we spend all our money rebuilding Iraq.

[august31950]

The world was literally built on the basis of accepting the lowest bid on contracts and paying out the lowest wages and benefits possible to employees. How many innocent lives have these principles cost? Does this apply here?

[rsmphd]

Ironically this week the house and senate have been working on earmark reform and curtailment of the pork in politics. That the taxpayers have to
see given to dead end projects of the Washington Elitists.

Congress this week is going to pass a bill with the earmark for 223 million for the Bridge to nowhere: Alaska's Gravina Island(Population of less than 50 residents)that will be connected to
Ketchakan (population 8,000) by a bridge as long
as the Golden Gate, and higher than the Brooklyn Bridge. Yet the bridges and infrastructure of the US highways that have millions of travelers will be left unattended.

The I 35W bridge could use those funds to start the cleanup and building of that bridge and maybe if they can find the restraint not to spend it all they could fix some of the other bridges in
the interstate system that are in dire need of repair.

[ubrew12]

Article: "Overall, one-quarter of all bridges in the U.S. are considered structurally deficient, and 80,000 bridges across the country need some sort of reconstruction or rebuilding."

According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, American infrastructure is now graded a D-, and needs a $1.6 trillion infusion immediately just to bring it up to code. This infrastructure includes bridges, roads, sewers, levees, dams, etc.

I believe that the country that built all this stuff, and had no trouble maintaining it, ended with the Reagan administration and has never resurfaced. Since then, the roll call has been tax cuts, massive debt, and massive defense spending. After 30 years, this means we've spent our Federal revenue on Iraq-style engagements abroad, Chinese clothing, and third mansions in the tropics for the rich. If taxes are raised now, it goes into servicing the debt and paying for the Boomers retirement.

Expect alot more bridges and levees to fail. And forget about nationalized healthcare. As Reagan would say, 'lift yourself up by your bootstraps' (and if you want to get across the Mississippi... row). LOL.

[glenn194513]

I seem to remember a section of I-95 NE of NYC falling in the early/mid 1980's but it's not listed in the article.

[sandycat2]

Perhaps our government should forget about giving so many billions in foreign aid to the rest of the world and keep the money at home and use it to help the American people.

[l8c6]

Lets hear from the economists and business leaders. Afterall, america is best run like a business. That's what the neo con boys have been telling us for at least 25 years.

Does it make sense to repair an old antiquated factory or operate it past the time its return becomes inadequate and no longer justifies paying for the cost of its overhead?

Same with america. It's getting old. The right wing corporatists elected to minimize government bureacracy like the U.S Army Corp of Engineers have underfunded such repair like good business people knowing it just doesn't make good business sense to keep patching an old antiquated machine.

So, I guess like good global entrepreneurs the robber barons will be investing in Dubai.

[coffeehead-2009]

Perhaps our government should forget about giving so many billions in foreign aid to the rest of the world and keep the money at home and use it to help the American people.
Posted by sandycat2


ummmm---

CBS News
"Foreign Companies Buy U.S. Roads, Bridges":

"Foreign companies are buying up American highways and bridges built by U.S. taxpayers.

"Roads and bridges built by U.S. taxpayers are starting to be sold off, and so far foreign-owned companies are doing the buying.

"On a single day in June, an Australian-Spanish partnership paid $3.8 billion to lease the Indiana Toll Road. An Australian company bought a 99-year lease on Virginia's Pocahontas Parkway, and Texas officials decided to let a Spanish-American partnership build and run a toll road from Austin to Seguin for 50 years.

"Few people know that the tolls from the U.S. side of the tunnel between Detroit and Windsor, Canada, go to a subsidiary of an Australian company -- which also owns a bridge in Alabama...

"Last year, [Chicago] sold a 99-year lease on the eight-mile Chicago Skyway for $1.83 billion. The buyer was the same consortium that leased the Indiana Toll Road -- Macquarie Infrastructure Group of Sydney, Australia, and Cintra Concesiones de Infraestructuras de Transporte of Madrid, Spain...

http://209.85.165.104/search?q=cache:6uMQJZp_E4cJ:www.whiskeyandgunpowder.com/Archives/2006/20060719.html+taxpayer money foreign owned roads&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=5&gl=us

[coffeehead-2009]

Before we invest in repairs....
we should
1. see if we own it.
2. see if we are selling it.

It's not like selling a house - we won't get gain any money - only lose MORE.


What's in it for the foreign companies? Huge potential profits. Gigantic, steady profits. Toll roads are an incredible asset class. They're often monopolies. They can support debt, since they provide a recurring guaranteed revenue stream that is likely to rise over time, as more people take to the roads and tolls increase. According to Cintra, the Indiana Toll Road generated $96 million in revenues in 2005, and Cintra expects a 12.5 percent internal rate of return on its investment. The heavy lifting has already been done: The state or federal governments have acquired the land and rights of way, built the roads and maintained them for years, and enacted toll increases. All the private companies have to do is deliver cash upfront, maintain the roads, and collect the windfall. The buyers can also increase their profits by making toll roads run more efficiently with technology. After assuming control of the Chicago Skyway, the Cintra-Macquarie consortium installed electronic toll equipment on some lanes. And by refinancing nimbly, companies can cash out. Last year%u2014just seven months into its 99-year lease%u2014Cintra announced that it had recovered 44 percent of its initial investment in the Chicago road through refinancing.

[AgentGGG]

The listing of all the various bridges that collapsed, without consideration of the origin of the incident, obscures the bigger issue of infrastructure maintenance. It is fundamentally not an issue of maintenance if a ship hits a bridge or if a gas tanker explodes and causes a bridge to melt.

[rushlimpdrug]

Fix this bridge after fixing the Iraq bridge.
They blew theirs up so it gets priority.
We didn't properly maintain ours so it is our fault.
Can we import a bridge from china?