Aug 7, 2007 12:08 am US/Central
Minute-By-Minute: MnDOT Cameras After Collapse
by Jason DeRusha
Minneapolis (WCCO) ―
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The video showed the lucky ones who got out of their cars and peered over the edge. No doubt they were thinking about how lucky they truly were.
CBS
The Minnesota Department of Transportation has released to WCCO-TV its traffic management cameras in the area of the bridge collapse. The camera feed MnDOT provided is positioned near Washington Avenue and Interstate 35W in Minneapolis.
The feed begins at 6:00 p.m. and runs through 6:30 p.m. At the start of the feed, traffic is moving normally with two lanes headed north and two headed south.
At 6:05 p.m., a car exits onto Washington Avenue and no other vehicles follow. At the same time, traffic comes to a complete standstill in the northbound lanes.
At 6:06 p.m., one car that was headed out of Minneapolis turns around and drives the opposite direction in the shoulder. The MnDOT camera operator swings the camera towards the Interstate 35W bridge over the Mississippi River and zooms in on the emptiness. The bridge collapsed and a large plume of dust filled the air. That dust lingers for more than a minute until the mangled rebar comes into focus.
The video showed the lucky ones who got out of their cars and peered over the edge. No doubt they were thinking about how lucky they truly were.
At 6:09 p.m., the video shows a man going back to his car, as it dangled over the edge of the bridge. He opened his trunk and grabbed something, before walking to the front passenger seat and taking something else. Perhaps he was reaching for first aid supplies or perhaps some personal belongings.
Moments later, some of the workers from PCI Construction began to come into view. Several of their friends went tumbling with the bridge with one still missing five days later.
At 6:19 p.m., smoke started to rise over the horizon. A WCCO-TV photographer and reporter Jason DeRusha arrive moments later to see the flames shooting from a Taystee truck delivering bread.
(© MMVII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Slideshow: Closer Look Of Bridge Collapse
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