It's at least refreshing to hear a captain being in an incident and immediately thinking about the risk to lives rather than covering their ass.

The image of that car stopped inches short of the gaping void is absolutely heart-stopping.

Who came here from the Francis Scott Key Bridge video ?

The actual distress call to the coast guard can be found on KZfaq. It's actually pretty chilling. When the captain says, "Stop all the traffic on the Skyway Bridge!" He's literally yelling it, as he had just witnessed a pickup truck drive off the fallen span and bounce off the deck of Summit Venture. The driver, Wesley Macintire, miraculously survived.

Probably my favourite disaster channel along with Plainly Difficult. I like it how you don't seem to try to make things dramatic, it's just a level voice all the way through.

My husband was on the bridge when this occurred. He was picking up a large commercial motor and was coming back to the East coast. Luckily for him when the incident occurred traffic was able to come to a halt. All vehicles were told they would have to turn around by law enforcement. Hubby was driving a semi and no way to just turn around. The bridge had to be cleared so he could back it up. He said that was scary too!

My Mother and Father were Paramedics who worked this call. My mother told me about it when I was a teen in the 90’s. I remember her crying and telling me how useless they felt as all they could do was stand by and watch them recover the bodies. It was a terrible tragedy.

My grandparents died in this accident (smith, NJ) orphaning my mother. She doesn’t talk about it much but we’re glad you covered it. Keeping the memory alive. Edit: it’s pretty crazy this showed up in my recommendations too. I’ve never watched this channel or searched for info on it. I found this purely by algorithm. 0.0

The fear of being completely helpless as you watch your life come to an end is the stuff of nightmares. RIP to all those who perished. 😢

So happy that this channel is almost at 1 million subscribers. So well deserved - no fluff, all content. What a great creator

I have a weird bridge phobia and this is of no help at all. How terrifying for those people, and devastating for their loved ones.

I have vivid memories of riding over the original bridge as a child. I would lay in the back of the station wagon, looking up at the huge Iron pillars above us as we passed under them. It seemed almost unbelievable when it collapsed. I was almost 7 years old and lived in St. Petersburg, when the Skyway was struck. I remember that morning vividly. My mother always put my older brother on the high school bus then, woke my brother and I to get us ready. That morning, when she put my brother on his bus, the weather was fine. By the time she woke us, 15 minutes later, the TV was issuing tornado warnings & this torrential storm had come from out of nowhere. It was the first time I ever saw my mother scared and upset. She told me she had a gut feeling something bad was gonna happen. She was calling the bus compound and my older brothers school frantic to make sure his bus arrived safely at school. This storm was so sudden and so severe that she had decided to keep my other brother and I home. We were told to sit on the couch while she made the calls to search for my brother's bus. I remember looking out the front window, the yard was flooding, the wind was grabbing garbage cans and debri. It was literally worse than the lower grade hurricanes I saw later in life. I remember thinking, I've never seen a storm like this before. Suddenly, the TV made an emergency announcement, "The Sunshine Skyway has just been struck by a barge!" My mothers premonition was right, but, it wasn't about my brother's bus, he made it to school safely. I stayed home that day while the news slowly informed us of what had actually occurred. It showed the pictures of this bridge I thought was indestructible, just torn in half. It was the first time I had witnessed mass grief that lasted for days. The stores were so weirdly quiet. There was either complete silence or quiet talk amongst strangers about the Skyway. The remaining span was turned into 2 way traffic across the bridge. My father drove the family over it to see the other spans destruction. It taught me nothing is indestructible no matter how strong it may seem. I am almost 50 years old and this memory is vivid like yesterday. I have a special connection to this bridge because of it. My heart goes out to everyone who lost their lives that day.

For those who might be curious - this bridge connects the St. Petersburg (Pinellas County) area with the Manatee County area, and there are still remnants of the old bridge used today as fishing piers on either side of where they used to connect. Thank you for telling this story! I've been over this bridge hundreds of times having grown up in Bradenton, and I've heard countless stories of what happened but never heard such an all-encompassing version of the entirety of the events.

The fog around the Skyway is still scary as hell. I was taking my dad to the airport one time, and the fog just was suddenly there. It made me so anxious that I couldn't drive back across the Skyway to go home.

My big brother was flew into Tampa-St Pete that morning;heading to see my other brother who was in the hospital in Venice clinging to life. This horrible tragedy happened a few hours before he was to cross it and it was before cell phones. We saw it on the news but heard nothing from him for hours and the terror for all reasons was indescribable. He finally arrived (having seen the wreckage and felt the horrors)-we got him to the hospital in time for him to be at my brother’s side. He passed away 2 hours later. Somehow he held on even though he was in a coma(despite the Bridge tragedy)so that my big brother could say goodbye. I will never forget that day worrying about losing two brothers..

I remember first hearing about this when my parents took my brother and I to Florida in the early 1980's. The story I heard was the driver who first noticed something wrong when the car far in front of him (about 100+ feet) just disappeared. I can't even imagine just driving along in the fog, not thinking about anything other than getting home, and then going into a freefall into grey nothingness.

The lesson from this incident, as well as the 1975 Tasman Bridge disaster, is that if you see someone going the wrong way on a bridge waving at you, you should stop.

As a Tampa native and child of the 70s, this is still the first disaster that's embedded in my mind. The footage of the bus being craned out of the water is as vivid a memory to me as the plane hitting the second tower.

My grand father was a rescue diver on this mission. He was never the same after recovering people out of the water.

Florida is my home state. As a teenager I crossed the old Sunshine Skyway bridge both going to and returning from Sarasota. I went across this bridge again after the new expansion was installed. The newer span is beautiful. Who ever designed it did a great job. Thank you for this documentary on our Sunshine Skyway bridge. It was very informative.

As someone who has crossed the Mackinac bridge dozens of times and hates large bodies of water this is an absolute nightmare.

I never knew of this disaster. It does explain why my Dad used to have us be completely silent while he 'concentrated on driving' while going over the bridge's replacement. It was already a bit unnerving because of the height but being quiet on top of that made it just that much worse when we were kids...

Wow. Can you imagine sitting there in your car, trying to stop the traffic from proceeding, knowing they were headed to their death--and there's not a thing you can do about it.

I remember this happening. My family had just moved from Indiana to Pinellas Park Fl. I had just turned 16. My prayers go to all whose lives were changed that day.

Interesting information on the captain's life afterward. I've watched several documentaries on this and not one shared any of that info about the captain's life after the accident. Good for him to be a teacher of ship pilots!

Fair play to the John Larro for being concerned about getting the traffic stopped. Sounds to me like he was experienced enough to navigate the fog on instruments and it was them that let him down badly. Yeah, he probably should've stopped, but at the time it was probably a reasonable call to make. Good to hear his forward story, too, that's a nice epilogue. Also, it's probably worth remembering, if you're on a bridge and you see a driver flailing wildly at you, it's probably a good idea to stop and not just whizz past like they're an idiot...

I was a junior in high school when this happened. I knew the captain that hit the bridge. He was one of the kindest men I have ever known. This tragedy gutted him. My father was a harbor pilot and the president of the association at that time. Before that he was a captain on the Great Lakes and knew many of the men that went down with the Edmund Fitzgerald. RIP

My mom had a reoccuring dream about driving into the water off the sunshine skyway. This was weeks before it fell. Mind you, she doesn't like tall bridges, but it's still creepy. You can still fish off the old bits of the bridge. There are also pieces of the old concrete used to make jetties. Next to the existing bridge. I always hated driving over it, it's creepy tall.

My father drove across this bridge the day it collapsed. Luckily it was before the ship had struck it. Imagine the horrible shock of finding out what happened later that day. I finally had my chance to see the new bridge a few years ago. Even with the new bridge in place, it was quite a strange feeling to be present at the site of such a disaster that could've profoundly affected us all.

My heart sank when I heard the account state that three cars and a bus went past him. What a horrid feeling. Edit: My replies turned into a debate about whether or not he should have stopped side-on to the oncoming traffic to stop it.

I always found the current sunshine bridge terrifying. You can see the remnants of the old bridge as you drive up, it’s a fishing pier, and the wind up there is insane. Feels like you’re going straight up while someone is trying to push you off. Always hated driving that thing.

It was morning fog, the kind that often made the top disappear for drivers. My husband was the first reporter onsite and found a wallet near the Yellow car stopped at the edge. I supplied structural steel for the replacement bridge tower elevators and cofferdams. The view from the top is amazing but the interior is mind blowing. Old engineers I worked with doubted the integrity of the new structure as it sits on expansion joint designed to last 25yrs but is replaced annually. That's scary too.

The captain's story following the crash is very inspiring. He used his experience of absolute tragedy to educate others and he apparently recovered from his own trauma enough to later council others dealing with trauma in their lives --This along with dealing with multiple sclerosis. So sad. He did everything he could and still there was a bus that went down. That really is awful. People dealing with communication should have been able to reach every bus and major truck en-route for miles, so it must be their failure worth considering here too.

Even today, I drive across the "new" bridge as fast as I legally can, all the while scanning as far ahead as I can for any missing roadway. I will never forget driving past the collapsed southbound lanes of the bridge and feeling horrified for the victims and the families they left behind.

Interesting that I'm seeing this video pop up in the suggestions mere days after the Baltimore bridge accident and collapse.

I grew up in St. Pete and the stories about this tragedy always haunted me, especially the bus that went over. I only found out recently that my mother was planning to drive southbound across the Skyway that morning, but decided not to given the weather report. Thank goodness she didn't go through with the trip. I was born just over 7 years later. It's eerie to cross the bridge to this day and think of those who lost their lives there. May their memories be a blessing and may they rest in peace.

A lot of ‘what ifs’ take place when something like this occurs, naturally. I have one, on a different bridge, bus, and country. We were in Zambia, and my girlfriend and I were on a truck we hitched a ride with to get to a bus (like a greyhound) that had a stop in a tiny town, and we were going to take it to the city of Lusaka for a flight. The truck decided to make a stop, took its time, and ultimately we missed our bus. Got to Lusaka the next day and found out on the news that our bus had gone full speed off a ravine where the bridge had just been washed out. All people on the full bus died. What if our truck hadn’t made a stop, causing us to miss our bus? Well, for one, I wouldn’t be here telling this story.

Captain really did the best they could, to be honest. He handled the whole situation like a professional. I feel like one of the biggest oversights of the situation was the lack of fortification on the pillars. If boats had crashed into them before, it was only a matter of time before a disastrous one was going to happen.

I lived on Anna Maria Island. The storm blew my front door open. Outside looking towards the Skyway Bridge I could see a huge portion of the bridge missing. The bridge/roadway was laying across the bow of the vessel draping over it's sides. The vessel wasn't heading out to sea (as this author states), it was heading into Tampa Bay and is why it hit the West span. The traffic effected was on the South Bound span (west side span)

I was living in Tampa when this happened. I was 14 years old, and usually listened to the news with my parents in the mornings. Even at age 14 it was a catastrophe. I remember crying. For years you could see it there before they tore it down.

I remember this well. I'd been over the old Sunshine Skyway Bridge many, many times as a kid. I hated it. It doesn't look bad in photos, but in the backseat of a car it was like going straight up. After seeing on this the news, I got a bit of a fear going over large bridges. I have driven over the replacement, but I avoid it if at all possible, even though it's not too bad.

As someone who grew up fishing on the ruins of the skyway, there's always been stories about "people under the water" where both divers, boaters, and even fishermen on the old bridge claim to see the ghosts of the people who drowned. I personally have seen glimpses from the corner of eye of faces just barely out of sight under the waves on more than one occasion. Tampa bay is still haunted by the bridge collapse, the current Skyway has failed inspection several times over the past few years and sadly the number of improvements to prevent jumpers have to be increased almost every year.

What’s wild right now is this video was recommended to me last night and I added to my my watch later list, then this morning before I watched it, there was a similar incident in Baltimore.

I can't begin to imagine the terror and absolute helplessness that those ppl felt in the split seconds it took those vehicles to plunge into the water . The fear had to be mind numbing. RIP to all those who died .

Impressive recounting of this tragic event. With relatives living in the Tampa area we often visited during the winter. As a very small child I was stuck in the middle of the back seat of my uncle's car. Even though I couldn't see out I was still terrified crossing that span. The long flat approach was enough to scare me. It also began my near paralyzing fear of heights and bridges. When I heard of the disaster I had to watch every news clip and read every report. I thought of it every time I crossed a major bridge. In the passing years, I've crossed the beautiful new bridge many times. I've been on the remains of the old bridge. I've stopped at the rest area on a day with weather much like the day it was struck. I've thought of those lives lost and their surviving families. And I am thankful for the safety improvements made after this horrific event.

I grew up on the coast of Florida and had nightmares about this growing up. It wasn't until recently that I found out that this wasn't a relatively common thing, just a rare accident that happened to be close to home. It's worth noting that in Florida, especially near the coast, storms come and go so fast it's almost cartoonish. You'll literally have perfectly clear skies when you start eating lunch then suddenly it looks like nighttime because the storm clouds are so dense. Then suddenly it's clear again.

I was 9 years old, lived in Bradenton, FL. I remember it like yesterday. To this day I have a fear of driving over bridges because of this tragedy.

I'm currently living in Vienna, Austria. My office is in the vecinity of the modern Reichsbrücke bridge. In 1976, the original bridge collapsed. It is a popular story in Vienna. It would be great if you could include your enthusiastic research and make a presentation. Thanks for your work.

I've lived in Saint Petersburg my whole life, I currently work for the local State transportation department that oversees the Skyway bridge, and have had the (scary) privilege of being able to go to the top of the Skyway's northern tower. It's somewhat haunting how much that event kind of looms over everything we do here. Every office seems to have something relating to the old Skyway and what happened. And like others have said in their comments, portions of the old bridge still exist as fishing piers which I have gone out on many times with friends. Currently they are showing their age quite a bit and there is a project to keep them maintained but there are talks of removing them as some sections are under so much disrepair

I've been on the new bridge 4 or 5 times. Freaks me out every single time. I was vaguely aware of the accident but through retelling I had a lot of the details wrong. I was told that a school bus drove off the bridge one morning during fog. Not that that the bridge had been partially destroyed and a greyhound carrying college students is what went over the edge.

My Mom was working in St Pete when this happened. Luckily she was off that day. I went across this bridge many times after I got my drivers license . We lived in Bradenton at the time. I'll never forget this horrible accident!!!!

I was to go to Bradenton that morning from Saint Petersburg , My boss said at 7 am to go down there over the Skyway , It was raining south of us. No big deal at the time. As I was getting in my truck , My boss came out and told me they got someone down there to do the job. Later that day ,we found out about the Bridge being hit . With the time of the collision and how long it would take for me to drive to the top of the Skyway , I would possibly been close to or on the bridge. This was a sad day for the Gulf Coast , I worked in the middle of Tampa Bay on a Dredge and I had been over the old Skyway a thousand times before the accident and never imagined a Ship could take it down.

My Dad drove us over that bridge when I was about 12 years old. I was terrified. We had just moved to Florida from Ohio and had never seen such a huge steep bridge. I hung onto the back of his seat and tried not to look. When I heard of the disaster years later I was just horrified! 😰😰😰

The emergency call audio is incredible to listen to Immediately taking control of situation and coordinating rescue efforts Sadly, from that height, very little could be done in terms of rescuing those that were already in the water, aside from one man that did survive.

and the tragedy repeated itself today

My grandparents came over that same bridge that morning about 3 hours before the ship struck, such a crazy situation that morning. I’ve always been nervous going over the new span, especially in less than ideal weather.

Amazing story , the captain did his best to tell all the emergency teams ASAP. God rest those 30 people. video was done so well.

One thing I like about this channel is that it presents the stories in a format that's nice and short. Many other channels will spend at a minimum half an hour to explain the same things that this one does in ten minutes.

We used to drive over the “newer” bridge every summer when I was a kid from our vacation spot in Treasure Island to my uncle’s house in Bradenton. My grandparents told me the story of the Sunshine Skyway disaster, and you could still see the remnants of the broken bridge on the side. This began my fear of bridges over water 😭

How history repeats itself.

I'm so glad you finally covered this! I'm a Tampa Bay native and grew up with this story. The Sunshine Skyway Bridge collapse is still remembered to this day, it's rare for Tampa Bay residents not to know about it. There are still some portions left of the original bridge that is now used as fishing docks. The Sunshine Skyway Bridge is listed as one of the top ten largest/ longest bridges in the world. There are also a ton of suicide prevention measures along the bridge because it is the local favorite suicide spot. Also, the water below the bridge is the most shark infested area in all of Tampa Bay.

I have a fear of heights and a fear of deep water. I used to absolutely hate having to drive over the Skyway back in the day. It was almost a full blown panic situation every time.

I was a little boy when my dad and I drove over this when it was freshly damaged- there was still one lane open and bumper to bumper traffic. It was absolutely terrifying going over it and I couldn't look out the window.

What a coincidence for this to pop up on my recommended page today

I remember this. I lived in Florida at the time. The big sister of one of my classmates was on that bus. I remember that I was shocked, and how sad I felt for him. I couldn't imagine losing my big sister.

One thing he didn’t mention, the approach roadways for the original bridge were converted into fishing piers, which are still in use and can be driven on today

I went over the original so many times as a kid and I was always terrified to go over it as I have extreme phobia of water. I would get on the floor board and scream the entire way across it. This was in 1969 and I was very young. When this accident happened I felt my fear was justified. RIP to all those who died in this accident.

St Petersburg is still a city on a peninsula yet now we have the skyway bridge that indeed does make traveling more convenient. I used to live in St Petersburg and I've been across the skyway bridge several times. If it's windy enough, the suspension cables cause the bridge to sway (which windy days are common here due to the tropical climate). There have also been accounts of spooky sightings of paranormal activity where the bridge starts (heading south bound from St Pete). Sadly, many people have taken their lives via jumping off the bridge. No one really knows if the spirit sightings are from the ship accident or from those who took their lives. Let's just say many people have avoided traveling across the sunshine skyway bridge because of these spooky tales. Yes, they do close the bridge down during inclement weather (fog is usually what causes most of the closures as well as tropical storms/hurricanes). I'm glad you covered this event because many people don't know about it, even most people who live in the area ☺️

I was a 25-year-old w for who lived and worked in Tampa at that time. I had arrived at work in a downtown office. We had the radio playing and we couldn't believe the news alerts about a ship hitting the Skyway Bridge and a Greyhound bus and cars going into the water. That bridge was so scary to drive over. Even though the new bridge is an improvement, it's scary to go drive on because it's so high up. Bless the souls who died that day.

Another disaster of more recent times that I'd not heard of, but then I was only about a year old at the time. But today (20th December) marks the 35th anniversary of the Dona Paz ferry disaster, the worst peacetime shipping tragedy of all time. Could a video be made to mark this anniversary? But keep up the good work done on this channel, and I hope you reach 1 million subscribers by the new year

I grew up within walking distance of the skyway bridge, it’s a local icon but since moving to a different state it has become obvious that this beautiful bridge is known to almost none it seems. It’s really cool seeing such a well done video about something I grew up with

I recall that morning in my senior high school year in Tampa. I was in school. It had been an unusually violent storm that morning. Someone came on the school radio system and announced that the skyway bridge had been partially collapsed due to collision by a ship and vehicles had driven off the missing span into the water far below. Scary memories even now.

I was just a kid when this happened. That was crazy. A lot of people are terrified of the current Skyway Bridge. It can be kind of unnerving at the peak, especially if it's windy.

kudos to the pilot admitting his mistakes and used it to teach other people to not repeat the same thing.

I moved to Bradenton in the 2010s from the Midwest. It wasn't until earlier this year when I was crossing the newer bridge with my fiancee that she pointed out where the old bridge used to be and made a comment about how sad it was. Confused, I asked her what she meant. When she told me what happened, I felt uneasy and nervous the entire way home from St. Pete. It's a horrifying tragedy, and I'm really glad you were able to cover it with grace and compassion.

I’m looking at this now ( 3/28/24), thinking how similar this is to the bridge accident in Baltimore, Maryland. The pictures of the bridge look almost the same.

Thank you so much for doing my suggestion!! As a St.Pete resident, this case always hits close to my heart and the hearts of those who live here. Thank you for providing context I'd never heard before and telling it in such a respectful and educational way, as usual!

Excited for 1M subscribers! That shows us how clever you are at making these videos!

Seeing this in my reccomended reminded me of the time we were visiting our grandparents and we were travelling over the new bridge (I think??? I was young, but I know we were on a bridge). My late grandpa told us the story of how he was about 7-8 cars back from the collapsed section. Crazy to think I wouldn't have ever met him had traffic been just slightly different. Peace to all those who lost their lives and their families.

History repeats itself, key bridge in baltimore maryland was stuck and collapsed this morning

Another respectfully and professionally presented production from the channel that sets the standard for this Genre. Between yourself and Brick Immortar, the refusal to use shock and awe production styles, and to stick the facts, are rare accolades, and for me, your channel, along with BI, are the authorities on informative, factual, well researched educational pieces and for me have lead to several instances of self learning and home research for my own curiosity. I like to think I'm a little smarter for that, so thank you.

I absolutely love your videos. The research that goes into them, the way you tell the stories, and the information you include are brilliant. I look forward to each and every one. Thank you!

I'm from the town on the south end of the Skyway. It was heartbreaking. I don't remember it happening but my mom always said it sounded like a sonic boom and it shook the windows. She wondered if a space shuttle launched without being announced. I do remember crossing on the northbound side, which became 2 way traffic while the new one was built. It was terrifying. My Grandma hated bridges before that happened and made my grandpa drive around through Tampa when they went to the PX at Mcdill lol

I can remember my grandmother taking me over the bridge a year or so after it’d been hit…seeing the other span basically cut in half was frightening to my 6 year old eyes! And that was on top of the fact that the top of the span didn’t have a concrete surface, it was steel mesh that you could see down through to the water…totally terrifying! The “new” Skyway is so much better!

Nearing a million subscribers!! Respect!! You should do a video on the 1996 Maryland Train Collision that occurred between a MARC Train and a Amtrak Capital Limited Train. That Train disaster is reason why passenger train cars design was overhauled in the 🇺🇸!!

I have only crossed it once. It was at the end of 1961 on a Christmas vacation with my parents and siblings. As a child I had never seen anything like it. The length and height in the middle impressed me so much that I never forgot it.

Unfortunately history repeated itself. The keybridge collapse in Baltimore has me watching all the bridge collapse videos and unfortunately modern ships are so large and heavy any bridge being struck by one doesn't stand a chance

All through the 70's, my father drove on the Sunshine Skyway, with me as a passenger, at least twice a month, usually on the weekends. The high central portion was always thrilling, if slightly terrifying. The incline seemed like a 40 degree angle, though I'm sure this was an illusion. It was tough to keep the car from reaching 100 mph going downhill, and it was at least a minute or two to complete travel over that section. The rest of the bridge was hardly different than any overpass, except that water was on both sides. We moved out of Florida months before the failure of the bridge.

I remember being a small child and driving over this span after the accident. Wondering why no cars were on the other bridge, then looking over and just seeing it no longer there. The old span was terrifying.

I was a senior in high school in Pinellas County in 1980, and this accident was a very big deal. We'd had a school trip and travelled by bus over it the week before. I love the detail about the survivor reflexively hitting the brakes even though they couldn't work.

I worked on a cruise ship that was the second smallest in the fleet and we would go under this bridge. It was a tight fit! I have total respect for the pilots that guided us through there. We would all go up to the pool deck to watch. It was kinda trippy the first couple of times.

I remember so well when this happened. Such a tragic day. May all those who perished rest in peace. And for those who suffered emotional stress and PTSD because of these events, I wish you peace in your hearts.

Ever since I was young I’ve had a reoccurring nightmare about being a passenger in a car driving on a bridge and screaming that part of the road is gone before plummeting to the water and I wake up as the windshield makes impact every time it’s extremely vivid. Never knew about this tragedy until today and now I have a serious case of the heebie jeebies 😰 RIP to those poor people

I recently drove over this bridge when we had to head South for business. Its amazing how you can actually see both sides of the old road bridge still up but used as a fishing pier, and I can guarantee you most people there are hardly aware of the tragedy that took place on the very road they are fishing off of. Its so sad that it had to happen the way it did, but at least the new bridge stands as a monument to them as well as a testament to mans determination to press on. Great video!

Anyone watching after the Baltimore bridge collapse? reminded me of this incident for obvious reasons.

I remember this disaster and I still have postcards of this bridge before the disaster. I've been across this bridge on the side wasn't destroyed, then across the new bridge several times.

this is honestly just terrifying.. just imagine driving on that bridge than almost out of nowhere, you start falling plummeting straight down right in the water just seconds before your death and all you can do is- well nothing. (im so happy for you! your so close to 1mil subs!)

I was born and raised in the St Pete/Sarasota area. This happened a few years before I was born but my mom remembers having driven over the skyway just an hour before this happened. She had stayed Wednesday night at a friends in St Pete and the two of them along with the girls family spent Thursday at Lowry Zoo. Early Friday morning, her friends mom was driving them back to my grandparents house in Bradenton so my mom could make it to school on time. She said they went over the skyway around 0630. I’m in my 30’s now and my mom still won’t drive the bridge either way. We have to get out at the rest areas on either side so I can drive across. She, and in turn me, wouldn’t be here if they were an hour later that day.

I watched this a day or two before what just happened in Baltimore. Super sad and scary

Had just watched this video a couple months ago, and now here, on March 26th 2024 we have another bridge carrying another Interstate collapsing after being hit by a large container ship. Everyone is wondering why the Francis Scott Key Bridge didn't get the protective bumpers added after the lessons from the Sunshine incident.