Our little Nerd clan had gathered in front of the TV for dinner. "The Simpsons" was cheerily chattering in front of us. We laughed together eating slightly charred, grilled hot dogs and chips. Life was good.
Then the phone rang.
"Turn on the news."
It was our good friend, Garrett.
"Hey! What's up?" I laughed. "What news channel?"
His voice came back dark and strained. "Any news channel."
There were no other words to describe what we saw.
Last night, just after 6:00pm CST, during rush hour traffic, the I-35W bridge over the Mississippi River in Minneapolis collapsed, spilling as many as 50 cars into the rushing waters. There was heart breaking tragedy. There were heart wrenching miracles. Heroes came from all walks of life and gave of themselves to save others, or comfort those in their last moments.
We were told to keep cell phone lines clear. Land lines were hit or miss with people calling in and out of the cities. When I finally reached my mother, she was nearly hysterical with fear. I could understand why. A few years ago she lost her father and her only brother, her mother was ailing, and the thought of losing her only child, son-in-law and grandkids was almost too much for her. I made the round of calls to the rest of our Twin Cities relatives and called her back to calm her.
As darkness fell last night, the rescue operation turned to one of recovery. Twisted and unstable wreckage along with a strong current made it too dangerous for rescuers to continue searching the submerged vehicles. Twenty to thirty families across the cities wait for word on their loved ones. My thoughts keep turning to them. I can't imagine your pain, but I pray for you. Right now, it's all I can do.
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