Re: Interstate-5 bridge collapses into river north of Seattle
Author: PNWRailfan
Date: 05-24-2013 - 12:21
In the stories I read, it said the oversized load was supposed to move toward the center of the bridge where the clearances were greater. But as the truck approached the bridge another semi raced up beside it pinning the oversized load in the outside lane where it impacted a number of the arched overhead trusses. While both of those semis made it across, a truck and camper following behind could not stop in time when the bridge ahead dropped away. Another car that was traveling northbound also got spun around and ended up in the southbound lanes of the collapsed span. Thankfully everyone else got stopped short of the missing span. What saved the people who ended up in the water was that their vehicles stayed on the collapsed span and did not plunge into the depths of the river.