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I-40 BRIDGE DOWN..."STATE OF EMERGENCY"

HighballHighball Member Posts: 15,755
edited May 2002 in General Discussion
I - 40 bridge,west of Fort Smith..
State of Emergency issued last hour or so.....
Nation: Barge runs into bridge on Arkansas River

Copyright c 2002 AP Online

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By CLAYTON BELLAMY, Associated Press


SALLISAW, Okla. (May 26, 2002 11:54 a.m. EDT) - A barge knocked out a 500-foot section of a bridge on Interstate 40 over the Arkansas River early Sunday, sending at least nine vehicles plunging into the water, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol said.

Six cars and three tractor-trailers could be seen in the water, and dive teams were on the way to the scene, in the southwest part of the state, said Sgt. Jarrett Johnson of the Oklahoma Highway Patrol.

At least four people were being treated for injuries.

"They're fixing to bring some more in. We don't know how many. We don't have a count at the present time," said Jewell Horn, mayor of nearby Webbers Falls. "We're bringing in either injured or bodies. We're not sure which at the present time."

A second bridge, at Webbers Falls, where traffic would have tried to pass after the first bridge collapsed, also was hit Sunday morning and was shaking but hadn't collapsed, Horn said. It wasn't clear if the same barge hit both bridges. Horn said that bridge had since been closed.

The I-40 bridge collapsed at 7:48 a.m., according to the Highway Patrol, but Horn said it wasn't clear when the barge hit it. The collision could have happened before dawn and the bridge could have later collapsed under the weight of the vehicles, she said. She said the bridge was about 20 years old.

Lake patrol units were interviewing the captain of the barge, Johnson said. Johnson said he did not know what caused the collision.

"There are probably thousands of cars that travel over this bridge every this day," Johnson said. "It's the main interstate that travels east and west through the state of Oklahoma."

The bridge is about 100 miles east of Oklahoma City and about 35 miles west of the Arkansas state line.

At least four patients were being treated at Muskogee Medical Center, three in stable condition and one in critical condition, spokesman Chad Wetz said. He said one is a 62-year-old man, and two are in their 30s or 40s.

One patient told Wetz he only recalled the bridge collapsing and then waking up in the hospital.

"He said he was driving along, and the next thing he knows, there was no pavement under him, and that he was headed for a concrete pillar of some sort and hit the water," Wetz said.




God,Guts,& GunsHave we lost all 3 ??

Edited by - Highball on 05/26/2002 16:22:23

Comments

  • robsgunsrobsguns Member Posts: 4,581 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    I think this is the same captain of the Exxon Valdez. I wonder how much Captain Morgan he'd had prior to his assuming duty on this ship.

    SSgt Ryan E. Roberts, USMC
  • SXSMANSXSMAN Member Posts: 2,616 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Highball? Is that really you? I've been asking around for months and no one I asked knew how you were or where you've been.
    Everything OK with you? I can only speak for myself but you have been missed.



    Have guns,will travel
  • HighballHighball Member Posts: 15,755
    edited November -1
    Sxsman; Yup....it be me.
    Been going thru one of those 'life changing events '...Had a perforated appendix..been bleeding junk into my system for years.Went to the doctors repeatedly..sent home with antibiotics and pain killers..one doc said I had 'gas'.....Finally had a woman doc take one look at me,sent me to a surgeon..two hours later,I was on the operating table.Bless her...I am sending her and her co-workers a catered meal,Thursday,from the best chef in the area.
    Got to where I didn't much care if I woke up in the morning...surgeon said I ought to have been dead.

    God,Guts,& GunsHave we lost all 3 ??
  • SXSMANSXSMAN Member Posts: 2,616 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Glad to hear your doing somewhat better.Thought after 9/11 you may have been layed off.Are you back wrenching on those big birds?
    By the by,I just went back to work full time last week.Was off work for three months after rotatercuff surgery.(Work over head is still rough).Must say,after hearing about you my shoulder is feel Much better.Glad to have you back.SxS

    Have guns,will travel
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