Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore collapses after column hit by large ship; vehicles, people in water
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20 replies
Holy shit I can't imagine the sheer terror. One second you're just doing your normal work commute, the next you just fell a hundred feet into freezing water. Without reacting immediately you're probably trapped in your car from the water pressure. Shit shit shit
Luckily this happened around 1:30 in the morning, because at rush hour that bridge is bumper to bumper and the death toll would be in the hundreds or even thousands.
This is what I'm thinking.
Its a genuine miracle that this is such a small death toll in a major city like this.
One can hope this raises awareness to fracture critical (iirc the term?) bridges that are vulnerable to catastrophic failures
I wonder if the death toll from having emergency services having to take a longer, more congested route will be higher than the actual accident. That bridge is the only way to cross the Patapsco south of Baltimore.
I mean, you're not wrong.
IIRC the hospitals are not spread out in ideal locations for this scenario, and I can't see Baltimore pulling an infrastructure miracle to compensate for the collapse any time soon.
The traffic effects will be felt from Philadelphia to DC, so I imagine the feds will jump on this pretty quick. I think the biggest problem is that it's a major bridge and the channel for a major port. Building a bridge without getting in the way of the shipping traffic is going to be complicated.
And I'm positive there will be extensive containership proofing upgrades that will complicate the build further.
Shows what I know about Baltimore. How interesting.
Luckily the bridge was closed to traffic in both directions at the time, for construction. Unfortunately, the missing people are the construction crew.
The article says several vehicle are in the water, including a tractor trailer rig. There was construction happening, but the bridge was apparently not closed.
They closed it after the ship’s Mayday call.
So far they’re only saying that members of the construction crew are missing.
Always cross bridges with the window cracked or open, folks!
The odds of a bridge collapsing while you drive over it are far too small to bother.
Not in America! Look up our crumbling bridge infrastructure to be amazed.
Yeah, then you can just drown nice and quick in icy water. Still better, since chance of escape or rescue is pretty much nil.
You can open the doors just fine once the cabin fills with water
This is true, if you can hold your breath long enough, against the pressure and the shock of the cold water and the pounding of your heart. I watched that Mythbusters episode too, and I think I'd die.
Luckily, Baltimore is such an affluent economic powerhouse. It can easily take the hit with minimal consequence. Go ravens!/s
Any Mothman sightings nearby?
In a strange twist it turned out that this happened just because the captain of the boat never got over "Hail, Columbia" losing out.