I'm not sure how many members are in MN, but please check in and let me know if you're okay.

There's been security camera footage of the collapse that has been shown on CNN. It's pretty incredible how quick and violently the bridge fell. Even with the injuries and tragic loss of life that has been reported, it really could have been so much worse.

It will take a minimum of two years to have a new bridge in place. Traffic will be a major headache in the downtown, U of M area for a loooong time.

Tank (who lives west of Minneapolis, and has several friends to the east)

It's good to hear you're okay though, Tank. You were one of the few I knew for sure lived in MN. This will definitely make driving into the cities a bit more worrisome.

I live about a half a mile away from where the bridge collapsed and take 35W to and from work. Luckily, I had some errands to run last night and was not near when the bridge collapsed.

-Em

I've been looking at photos and reading reports today - and this is seriously scary. It looks like the aftermath of an earthquake. How could it have happened? It's barely believable.

I'm glad to hear that our Twin Cities FoLCs are safe. Good to see the three of you checking in.


Wendy

What is really scary is that 80% of the bridges in the US rate at below safety standards as this bridge did. I live in Ocean City, MD and have to travel bridges to get in or out of town that go over a bay and a river. Last year they worked on one of our main bridges down underneath where you couldn't tell what they were doing.

After watching the coverage where they suggest you carry something to facilitate your own escape by smashing your window to get out I've added a hammer to my shopping list. To even get to the nearest Wal-Mart I have to cross the bay and a river. So I plan to also put a floatation device in on my front seat. I can swim but not that good. It would do me a lot of good to drown if I did manage to get out. That coverage of the bridge is giving me nightmare and making me crazy as you can see.