| 35W Briidge Collapse |
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As probably everyone knows, on August 1, 2007, the Interstate 35W bridge over the Mississippi river new downtown Minneapolis and the University of Minnesota collapsed into the river, killing 13 and injuring dozens of others. As with everyone from the area, the tragedy hit close to home. We were celebrating the birth of our second son Andrew which had happened less than two weeks earlier, ironically just up-river from that bridge. Tim went to the U of MN for grad school, and spent plenty of time at the riverfront bicycling, rollerblading, or just walking around -- indeed sometimes right under that very bridge. Echoing many, we felt "these sorts of things just don't happen here". Maybe in earthquake or hurricane zones, or in some third-world country where they don't repair their infastrucure, but in Minneapolis?
In any case, like many others, we felt the need to see the wreckage for ourselves. The first few pictures were taken from the Stone Arch Bridge on August 11. This bridge is far enough away, and blocked by the lower lock and dam, that there wasn't a lot to see. The remaining pictures were taken on September 1 from the newly-reopened 10th Avenue bridge and also the Northern Pacific Bridge #9. By this point, all the cars had been removed, most of the concrete decking had been removed, and a lot of effort to re-open the shipping channel had occurred. Toward the end of the album are a few pictures of the Bohemian Flats area, which is being used to investigate removed bridge members.
Our hearts go out to those lives lost in the tragedy, which included a relative of one of Tim's coworkers...
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35W Bridge Collapse |
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Onlookers on Stone Arch BridgeThe mood was somber, and several flags were put up as a memorial.
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Collapse from Stone Arch BridgeAgain, best seen if enlarged. At the time these pictures were taken, there were still a number of bodies unrecovered and the recovery effort was in full swing.
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Collapse from 10th Avenue BridgeThis was one of our first glimpses as we started walking along the 10th Avenue Bridge the day after it re-opened. The 10th Avenue Bridge was just a block or two from the 35W bridge, so the details of the collapse were much more clear.
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Collapse from Stone Arch BridgeIf you enlarge the picture, you can see some of the green structural members jutting upward, as well as some of the concrete decking in the river underneath and the lock/dam structure. In the background is the 10th Avenue Bridge, where most of the later pictures in this album were taken (it was closed at the time we took the ones on the Stone Arch Bridge).
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Collapse from 10th Avenue BridgeBuckled sections of roadway and collapsed truss section.
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Collapse from 10th Avenue BridgeA zoomed-in version of the previous picture.
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Collapse from 10th Avenue BridgeAs noted in the introduction, much of the concrete decking had been stripped from the bridge members by this point, a month after the collapse.
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Collapsed sectionThis section, which landed in the water at an angle, still has its concrete decking, as well as some construction cones (the bridge was being worked on during the collapse). Taken from the 10th Avenue Bridge
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Collapse from 10th Avenue BridgeAnother angle.
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Collapse from 10th Avenue BridgeAnother picture from the same vantage point as the previous.
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West River ParkwayThis is normally a scenic river parkway with adjacent bike and walking paths.
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Lower Lock and Dam EntranceThe entrance to the lower lock and dam is blocked. In the upper left of this picture, as well as the previous picture, you can see the wooden stairway that was added to give access to the lock until the debris can be removed.
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