[Update 8/2/07] - Updates for today found here.
[Updates below]
Horrible news.
A portion of the Interstate 35W bridge over the Mississippi River collapsed Wednesday sending many vehicles into the water.
Tons of concrete have collapsed and people are injured. Survivors are being carried up the riverbank.
Amelia Huffman, Minneapolis police spokeswoman, said that a portion of the bridge over the Mississippi River dropped into the water.
"It's unclear what caused it," Huffman said.
It's unclear how many people were injured.
Television reports show a flaming tractor trailer, cars overturned and jagged sections of road.
KSTP-TV showed an image of a school bus trapped on the collapsed bridge, and at least 20 more cars affected.
The Minnesota State Patrol said the first report of the collapse came in at 6:09 p.m. tonight.
The Ramsey County Sheriff's Office is setting up casualty treatment areas and have put out calls for multiple backboards.
Interstate 35W southbound has been closed at Hwy. 280, according to the State Patrol.
The bridge, built in 1967, had both north and southbound lanes inspected by the Minnesota Department of Transportation in 2004, according to KSTP-TV.
Witnesses say at least 20 cars involved, people are trapped and rescue workers are scrambling.
From the Star Tribune:
The Interstate Hwy. 35W bridge over the Mississippi River collapsed during the evening rush hour Wednesday, dumping at least eight cars and a truck into the water and onto the land below, creating a horrific scene of damage, fire, smoke, injuries, frantic rescuers and terrified motorists.
It was not clear how many people might be hurt or killed, but witnesses said at least 20 cars were involved.
The crumpled green wreckage of the bridge lay on the east bank of the river, and a huge section of concrete roadway lay on the west bank. Down below in the river gorge, rescue workers scrambled to help people on the roadway that now lay in the gorge. Fires burned and black smoke rose billowed the wreckage.
Workers have been repairing the 40-year-old bridge’s surface as part of improvements along that stretch of the interstate.
Rescue workers were helping some people from cars in the river onto land.
People at the scene said the entire bridge collapsed, leaving part of the roadway submerged and part above water.
A number of people were walking around on the roadway that was not submerged.
Ramon Houge of St. Paul, was on his way home from work at Wells Fargo and was driving on the bridge when heard a rumbling noise, saw the ground collapse and cars go down. He said cars backed up as best they could and he parked in a construction zone and was finally able to turn around and drive off the bridge. “It didn’t seem like it was real,” he said. Traffic was bumper to bumper and hundreds of people would have been involved, he said, adding that he saw kids on a bus with blood on their faces.
Sarah Fahnhorst, who lives in an apartment a block away from the bridge, heard a huge thud and then “the entire building shook. It shook the ground.”
Fox News is getting witness reports, one man actually said his truck was cut in half and he was lucky he was seat belted in.
Horrible.
[Update] 20 to 30 injured, 2 dead that we know of so far. There has been construction going on, but no idea why the full collapse yet.
[Update] Star Tribune again, they are updating also and I am bringing it to you as they do.
Multiple trauma victims -- some in critical condition -- have been taken to Hennepin County Medical Center.
The crumpled green wreckage of the bridge lay on the east bank of the river, and a huge section of concrete roadway lay on the west bank. Down below in the river gorge, rescue workers scrambled to help people on the roadway that now lay in the gorge. Fires burned and black smoke rose billowed the wreckage.
Workers have been repairing the 40-year-old bridge’s surface as part of improvements along that stretch of the interstate.
Rescue workers were helping some people from cars in the river onto land.
People at the scene said the entire bridge collapsed, leaving part of the roadway submerged and part above water.
A number of people were walking around on the roadway that was not submerged.
Ramon Houge of St. Paul, was on his way home from work at Wells Fargo and was driving on the bridge when heard a rumbling noise, saw the ground collapse and cars go down. He said cars backed up as best they could and he parked in a construction zone and was finally able to turn around and drive off the bridge. “It didn’t seem like it was real,” he said. Traffic was bumper to bumper and hundreds of people would have been involved, he said, adding that he saw kids on a bus with blood on their faces.
Sarah Fahnhorst, who lives in an apartment a block away from the bridge, heard a huge thud and then “the entire building shook. It shook the ground.”
Emergency calls began flooding into Minneapolis' 911 center about people and cars dumped into the Mississippi River.
"Everybody's pretty much saying the same thing: That there's some people in the water" said Tashia Brown, a 911 operator.
She said one 911 caller said she could see the construction workers using a jackhammers when the bridge collapsed close to her car. "She saw it and she said she just gunned it and just made it out of there," Brown said.
Minneapolis police and fire, the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office, the Minnesota State Patrol and other agencies were responding.
Some callers were requesting ambulances, others said they had slight injuries but didn't know how to get off the bridge.
Amidst the rescue efforts, the Minnesota State Patrol said at 7 p.m. that the cause of the bridge collapse remained undetermined.
Traffic was being stopped at University Avenue from the North and Washington Avenue from the South.
The State Patrol was setting up a command post.
The arched bridge, which was built in 1967, rises about 64 feet above the river.
The collapse occurred at the end of rush hour, when cars were bumper to bumper in traffic, many trying to get to the Twins game at the nearby Metrodome, which was scheduled to begin at 7:10 p.m.
Area law enforcement, including the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office, had launched at least three boats to help with the rescues.
While waiting for the updates to continue, more can be found at LGF, Power Line, Hot Air, Wizbang, The Moderate Voice, Michelle Malkin...more here at memeorandum.
[Update]So far, confirmed fatalities at 3 now.
[Update] Like they need more problems, the forecasters are predicting rain is on its way there. Rescue operations are continuing.
[Update] Hot Air seems to be watching the same thing I am, so here is his update:
“According to a structural engineer who spoke with WCCO-TV’s Don Shelby, it doesn’t appear to be a concrete failure but that the steel failed.” A former NTSB commissioner is telling Sean Hannity as I write this that he’s surprised the bridge hasn’t been inspected since 2004. WCCO has now updated to say that while work has been going on for the past nine months to repair potholes and concrete, there’s been no work on the structure under the bridge.
[Update] Star Tribune updated, here it is in full:
The Interstate Hwy. 35W bridge over the Mississippi River collapsed during the evening rush hour Wednesday, dumping an estimated 50 vehicles into the water and onto the land below, creating a horrific scene of damage, fire, smoke, injuries, frantic rescuers and bloody, terrified motorists.[Update] They are still searching for survivors, fires are breaking out, I am watching it on fox, the fires aren't being addressed right now because the focus, rightly so, is on the rescue efforts.One death has been reported by the Hennepin County Medical Center.
It was not clear how many people might have been hurt or killed, but witnesses said at least 20 cars were involved. As of 7:30, one construction worker was unaccounted for and three injured. Rescuers rushed to help people escape cars trapped in the V where the bridge had caved in. Many vehicles, including at least one semitractor trailer, were on fire. People were also reportedly floundering in the river.
The crumpled wreckage of the bridge lay on the east bank of the river, and a huge section of concrete roadway lay on the west bank. Down below in the river gorge, rescue workers scrambled to help people on the roadway that now lay in the gorge. Fire and black smoke rose from the wreckage. Workers had been repairing the 40-year-old bridge’s surface as part of improvements along that stretch of the interstate.
Officials set up a triage center for some of the injured at the American Red Cross office a block from the bridge, said Red Cross spokeswoman Tammy Nystuen.
“I know that at least some of the kids from the school bus are there. I don’t know where they’re from or if anybody is badly hurt,” she said. The building is at 1201 West River Parkway.
Paul McCabe, spokesman for the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Minneapolis, said the FBI has responed to the collapsed bridge to offer assistance and conduct any investigation that proves necessary. But he said there was "no reason at this time to believe there's any nexus to terrorism."
An executive with the contractor, PCI of St. Michael, told the Star Tribune that, as of 7:30 p.m., one of its workers was unaccounted for.
The Twins announced that they have postponed Thursday afternoon's game against Kansas City because of the collapse. Also, the Twins, Hennepin County and the Minnesota Ballpark Authority have also postponed Thursday evening’s new ballpark groundbreaking ceremony. More information regarding the rescheduled game and the groundbreaking ceremony will be available at a future time.
Berndt Toivonen, 51, of Minneapolis, was on his way home from a painting job when it collapsed beneath his car.
“The bridge started to buckle,” he said. “It went up and it came down. I thought I was gonna die.” His Ford Explorer rolled backwards about 50 feet, and he hit the brakes. He was uninjured, but all around him people were screaming from their cars, some with injuries. He went from vehicle to vehicle helping people out.
Four cars were submerged in the river upstream of the bridge and a rescue worker waded in the water searching for survivors. On the east bank, only a small section of the bridge support was still standing, and it was creaking as rescue workers carried out the injured.
People nearby said they heard a sound like an earthquake or a plane crash, and the collapse set off alarms in the nearby Stone Arch Apartments.
“It just came down, a crash, smoke everywhere... A whole bunch of people were screaming, people were trapped in their cars,’’ said Ross MacMillan, 39, who had just driven under the bridge on 2nd Street.
Sarah Fahnhorst, who was in her apartment a block away from the bridge, heard a huge thud and then “the entire building shook” as the bridge fell.
“It shook the ground,” she said.
Dayna Wolfe, who lives near the Stone Arch Bridge, heard the collapse and came out on her bicycle to see what had happened. Wolfe, a physician and physical therapist, said she is certain that many people had been killed or were trapped in their cars. She said the scene was worse than any of the many earthquakes she had survived in California.
“This is the kind of stuff you see with gigantic earthquakes,” she said. “You don’t see this kind of thing in Minnesota.”
[Update] More from the Star Tribune with witness reports:
[Update] Fox News again, 6 critically injured so far, 22 injured. They are also saying the weather heading that way is to be "severe".
Ramon Houge of St. Paul was on his way home from work and was on the bridge when he heard a rumbling noise and cars in front of him began to go down. He said cars that could backed up to a construction zone and was finally able to turn around and drive off the bridge. “It didn’t seem like it was real,” he said.
Traffic was bumper to bumper and hundreds of people would have been involved, he said, adding that he saw kids get off a crashed bus on the bridge with blood on their faces.
A school bus, filled with 60 children, ages 5 to 17, returning from a daycamp was on the bridge when it collapsed, injuring at least two children and two adults seriously, according to one of the children.
“We collapsed,” said Ryan Watkins. He said the bus bounced twice and then stopped. He and others escaped out the rear door of the bus because the front door was wedged against a concrete traffic barrier. The kids were returning from a day of swimming at Bunker Beach, said Watkins. They are members of the Waite House summer program based in Minneapolis.
Marcelo Cruz, 26, of Crystal, who has used a wheelchair since being paralyzed in a shooting in South Carolina several years ago, was driving his van across the bridge toward downtown when he felt it began to wave up and down. He steered into the concrete railing to stop himself from driving into the river, and saw many cars on the bridge fall into the water.
His van came to rest steeply inclined toward the river and several onlookers ran and told him to get out. He said he needed help and the onlookers carried him out of his van in his wheelchair to safety on the riverbank. “I’m lucky to be alive,” he said over and over again.
Gary Babineau, 24, of Blaine, was headed northbound on 35W when the bridge gave way.
“I can’t believe I’m alive,” he said. “I saw a couple of cars go down completely,” he said. “It just totally collapsed.”
There was a school bus next to him and there were a lot of kids inside, he said. A lot of them were bleeding and he helped them come up to safety. A lot of the children were taken away by ambulance, he said.
“My truck got cut into two pieces,” said Babineau, who was bleeding from his nose.
Jay Danz, 45, of St. Paul was driving to the Twins game and took W. River Parkway under the bridge just before it collapsed.
“I heard it creaking and making all sorts of noise it shouldn’t make,” he said. “And then the bridge just started to fall apart.”
Danz said he was just five feet past the bridge when it collapsed behind him. Twisted green girders lay on the ground behind him.
He got out of his car and saw a school bus full of kids sitting askew on the collapsed road above him. He scrambled up a hill to help kids get off the bus. “Some kids had blood on their faces, but thank God, everybody could move,” Danz said. “Every seemed OK.”
There were cars behind him on River Pkwy., but Danz said they were far enough behind that he didn’t think they were under the bridge when it fell. John Joachim of Taylors Falls took 35W to the Twins game and said traffic suddenly “slammed to a stop” he neared University Avenue.
“I didn’t know what was going on but a huge cloud of dust rose in front of us,” he said.
Louis Rogers, 28, of Roseville was driving home from work listening to music in his Chevy Blazer when the bridge gave way just feet in front of him.
“It just disappeared; it made no sound whatsoever,” he said. “It was pretty much like a thud, not too loud of a thud. The next thing I know, cars were dropping and there was smoke. My car was no more than five feet from the edge.”
Rogers tried to help some of the people in cars that had fallen into the river and stopped on the bridge.
“I saw a lady in a car and I screamed, but I got no response,” he said. “I grabbed my bag and started signalling cars to get out of there.”
Ryan Murphey, ,30, Minneapolis, went to the scene to see if he could help out.
“It looked a terrorist attack, a complete catastrophe,” Murphey said. “But everyone there was very calm and organized.” He helped remove two victims frmo the east side of the bridge on stretchers, including a woman in her late 50s with a “bloody face.”
Jane Marshall, 27, of Minneapolis, and her sister were behind Rogers on the highway and were on their way to the Twins game. They were driving toward the bridge when it collapsed.
“I still can’t believe it,” she said an hour after the bridge collapsed. “We were so close. If we hadn’t stopped to get gas, it might have been us there.”
The two called their parents right away to let them know they were OK. “We’re not sure if we’re going to the game or not,” Marshall said. “It just hit us -- we could have died.”
The Twins decided to play Wednesday night’s game, but only after the public address announcer alerted the crowd at 7:08 p.m. of the bridge’s collapse. A moment of prayer followed. It was then announced that the game would go on so emergency crews could perform their duties without the added pressure of having 20,000 to 25,000 people scrambling in swarms from the Dome area.
However, the Twins postponed Thursday afternoon’s game against Kansas City. Thursday evening’s groundbreaking ceremony for the Twins new ballpark also was postponed.
Amidst the rescue efforts, the Minnesota State Patrol said at 7 p.m. that the cause of the bridge collapse remained undetermined.
Traffic was being stopped at University Avenue from the North and Washington Avenue from the south.
The State Patrol was setting up a command post.
The arched bridge had risen about 64 feet above the river before its collapse at the end of rush hour, when cars were bumper to bumper in traffic.
Area law enforcement, including the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office, had launched at least three boats to help with the rescues.
“Unbelievable,” said Audrey Glassman of Minneapolis, who left her work shift at nearby Spoonriver restaurant to survey the scene. “You’ll never cross a bridge again without thinking about this.”
Paul McCabe, spokesman for the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Minneapolis, said the FBI has responed to the collapsed bridge to offer assistance and conduct any investigation that proves necessary. But he said there was "no reason at this time to believe there's any nexus to terrorism."
An executive with the contractor, PCI of St. Michael, told the Star Tribune that, as of 7:30 p.m., one of its workers was unaccounted for.
The Twins announced that they have postponed Thursday afternoon's game against Kansas City because of the collapse. Also, the Twins, Hennepin County and the Minnesota Ballpark Authority have also postponed Thursday evening’s new ballpark groundbreaking ceremony. More information regarding the rescheduled game and the groundbreaking ceremony will be available at a future time.
[Update] Star Tribune again, witness:
Dayna Wolfe, who lives near the Stone Arch Bridge, heard the collapse and came out on her bicycle to see what had happened. Wolfe, a physician and physical therapist, said she is certain that many people had been killed or were trapped in their cars. She said the scene was worse than any of the many earthquakes she had survived in California.
Waiting for the news conference.
I will bring more as it comes out.
.
UPDATE
(I'm using the Star Tribune as well for my updates)
The Twins decided to play Wednesday night’s game, but only after the public address announcer alerted the crowd at 7:08 p.m. of the bridge’s collapse. A moment of prayer followed. It was then announced that the game would go on so emergency crews could perform their duties without the added pressure of having 20,000 to 25,000 people scrambling in swarms from the Dome area.
However, the Twins postponed Thursday afternoon’s game against Kansas City. Thursday evening’s groundbreaking ceremony for the Twins new ballpark also was postponed.
Amidst the rescue efforts, the Minnesota State Patrol said at 7 p.m. that the cause of the bridge collapse remained undetermined.
Traffic was being stopped at University Avenue from the North and Washington Avenue from the south.
The State Patrol was setting up a command post.
The arched bridge had risen about 64 feet above the river before its collapse at the end of rush hour, when cars were bumper to bumper in traffic.
Area law enforcement, including the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office, had launched at least three boats to help with the rescues.
[Updated ]
The Interstate Hwy. 35W bridge over the Mississippi River collapsed during the evening rush hour Wednesday, dumping an estimated 50 vehicles into the water and onto the land below, creating a horrific scene of damage, fire, smoke, injuries, frantic rescuers and bloody, terrified motorists.[Update 10:15pm CST]Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak said at a news conference tonight that six people had died.
As of 7:30, one construction worker was unaccounted for and three injured.
One death was reported by Dr. Joseph Clinton of the Hennepin County Medical Center. Clinton added that HCMC had admitted 22 serious but non-critical patients.
"It's obviously a catastrophe," said Gov. Tim Pawlenty. "We want to make sure we can do all we can to help those in need.
"Our thoughts and prayers" are with the families of all the victims.
Family members of victims are asked to go to the Holidy Inn Metrodome.
Baseball fans leaving tonight's Twins game should find alternative routes home.
At this point, the NTSB has announced that they will be investigating, but other news is at the point of reiterating what has previously been said through the evening.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of those caught up in this catastrophe.
Those of you reading who are in the Twin Cities region, please, I'm asking personally AS a former fire fighter, stay home and watch the situation on television. Leave the area clear for rescue personel to do their work. Thank you.
[Update-] Fatalities are up to 7 now, our sympathies go out to the all involved, injured and the familes of the deceased.
Tragedies such as this bring out the best or the worst in people and this one has brought out some heroic acts.
Just one of many examples that we will bring you over the next couple days:
Bavanaugh said a school bus full of children was ahead of him. He got on the bus and helped children, who he estimated to be 8-12 years old, off the bus and off the bridge.
"It is just horrific," said witness Marilyn Franzen, who saw the bridge collapse. Franzen said she saw a school bus that managed to stop before the going over the edge of the bridge that she said was carrying 20-30 children.
Running updates over at WCCO.com.
From Star Tribune again, 7 dead, 35 injured and 20 missing.
According to the State Patrol, 30 to 35 people were injured and 20 people were missing. Between 50 and 60 vehicles were on the bridge when it went down, the Patrol said. Authorities said Wednesday night the cause of the collapse was unknown.
We will bring you more as it comes in.
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