Some of the biggest news of this year’s Memorial Day Weekend came from Mount Vernon, where the heavily used I-5 bridge over the Skagit River collapsed Friday evening, sending two vehicles plunging into the freezing cold water below. Fortunately, despite the terrifying downfall of the bridge, no one was killed and those who fell in walked away with just minor injuries. The fallen section is currently being retrieved from the water.
This specific bridge serves as an important connector between Seattle and Vancouver, BC. It’s fall affected traffic all weekend long. Businesses nearby are saying that they took a hit after cars were detoured to different roads. Employees lost hours and sales were split in half of what they should be.
It is unclear what exactly caused the collapse, but investigators have narrowed their suspicions down. William Scott was driving his truck for Mullen Trucking of Alberta, Canada, when some of his load hit the bridge’s trusses. He looked behind him after driving across and saw the bridge falling right before his eyes. The truck had proper permits, but it is believed that it is not the first vehicle to have struck the bridge.
For now, the 71,000 vehicles that cross the bridge everyday will have to go elsewhere to get to where they need to be.