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Recovery Efforts Continue Following Minneapolis Bridge Collapse; Are America's Bridges Safe?

Aired August 03, 2007 - 15:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Well, 44 hours after the busiest bridge in Minnesota turned to rubble, investigators still don't know what they might find in the water. And they don't know when or how they might find it.
Hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips at the CNN Center in Atlanta. Don Lemon is in Minneapolis. He's going to join me in just a moment.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Want to get straight to the newsroom. T.J. Holmes working a developing story for us right now -- T.J.

T.J. HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, a dead body found at the home of an actor a lot of folks will recognize. The body of a man, 40-year-old man, was found at the home of actor Ving Rhames in Brentwood. The 40-year-old victim had apparently been mauled, bitten and mauled to death by four dogs that he was in charge of caring for at the actor's home.

These four dogs, mastiffs, if you are familiar with them, can be some pretty good-sized and strong animals. But the 40-year-old was spotted laying out in the front lawn. It was phoned in around 7:15 local time to the local police, and got there, and now these four dogs are in custody of animal services.

The victim, his name has not been released, but a 40-year-old who for the past year -- past two years, rather, has worked there and has being taking care, kind of the groundskeeper and also took care of these dogs.

Ving Rhames, of course a lot people will recognize from "Mission: Impossible" fame and all three of those movies, also "Pulp Fiction" fame. But a man found dead, the caretaker for these animals and also a groundskeeper there, found dead, mauled to death apparently by four mastiffs that he was in charge of caring for at the home of actor Ving Rhames, so, a horrible story, and just a horrible way to go, really, with these dogs.

So, we will see the details and see what comes out of this now. Yes, these are, again, mastiffs. Don't know how familiar you are with them, Kyra, but some details on them there, pretty good-sized dogs, 27 to 36 inches, pretty tall. Also, they can weigh up to 300 pounds in some cases. These are big dogs in a lot of cases. But four of them apparently bit this man and mauled him to death at that home, a horrible story, but the home of actor Ving Rhames. We are following this story.

Kyra, we will give more details as we get them to us.

PHILLIPS: All right, T.J., thanks.

Let's get back to Minnesota and now and bring you up to date on what we know this hour. Recovery workers say that water conditions in the Mississippi River are a little better than expected today, but visibility is still limited to about six inches. Five people are confirmed dead. The sheriff's department says eight others are still missing.

First lady Laura Bush is in Minneapolis. She thanked first- responders for their hard work. President Bush plans to visit the site tomorrow.

And investigators continue to analyze the evidence, including that dramatic surveillance video that captured the collapse as it happened.

Let's get back to our Don Lemon. He's live in Minneapolis with more -- Don.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Absolutely, Kyra.

We have are getting updates from investigators all day. And just a press conference that happened a short time ago, we learned the most probably than we have learned since early on the hours into this investigation, investigators talking about the challenges that divers are facing here, facing going into the waters of the murky Mississippi.

Now, they say that the water conditions a little bit better than they expected. But that still doesn't mean that those water conditions are good. What they have done to help out with that, they lowered the water level here by using those dams and gates that they have here.

We spoke -- did a very personal interview, and somewhat emotional interview, with someone who is a diver, a master diver. He's also an instructor. He's also part of a dive team at a local municipality here which may be called out if these divers are in the water for a very long time. Of course, they have to be relieved by other divers in the area.

And this person part of that elite team. He spoke to us about swimming and trying to find bodies and recovered debris and bodies from these terrible, terrible conditions that are happening now in the Mississippi.

Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TODD MATTIES, MASTER DIVER: Not to say that you get callous to it, but there is a point at which you get used to that. And, again, you're always kind of thinking that's what's going on in the back of your head, is that somebody needs to do this. Somebody needs to have closure for the family.

And if you're an active diver and you're comfortable in the water, then it's like you would say, who else would do it, that type of an attitude. So, that's what kind of keeps you going. But you do get used to it, if I can be -- if I can say that. You are never really used to it. You're always affected by it, but it's not as much of a factor as you progress and that you're on more rescues or recoveries.

LEMON: I was going to say, it has to affect you, though.

(CROSSTALK)

MATTIES: Oh, it absolutely does, yes. Yes.

LEMON: How so?

MATTIES: I think emotionally you always -- you do think about that and you think about the families and then the victim itself. There's -- there's all sorts of ways it does affect you. And sometimes it takes a while, hours or days. But, yes, it does -- it does change you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Yes, they train for this. It's called structural collapse training. It's also called recovery training.

And he said, you know, you kind of get used to it. But it still affects you. It's still very personal.

Every single person we have spoken to, every single rescue person, the first and foremost thing on their mind, the victims and the families and trying to bring closure to the families. This diver hitting on some of the same topics that they were hitting on at a preference conference just moments ago by the sheriff's department here.

We want to go to that command center, where that press conference happened and get an update now from our Allan Chernoff.

Allan, what have you learned?

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Well, Don, part of what's so awful here, as you mention about the victims, is so many people simply just do not know.

We know that five people are dead. How many more? That is a question that has yet to be answered. The sheriff just yesterday had estimated there were eight people missing. Now he's pulling back from that number. Indeed, when we spoke to the police department earlier today, they said that number eight was speculative. The police chief, he had estimated 20 to 30. The bottom line, the sheriff conceded just a little while ago, nobody really knows. Let's have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICH STANEK, HENNEPIN COUNTY, MINNESOTA, SHERIFF: Not going to commit to a number, other than to tell you folks have been working very hard. I know that earlier this morning, one of the folks that was unaccounted for has now been accounted for. That's what happens. It's my understanding this woman had been at work, right? Car recovered?

The car had been recovered by us. Detectives located her at work this morning. Things happen, right? That's good news for us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: And other people in town also have gotten good news just like that. Yesterday, we brought you the story of a woman who was certain that her sister had died in the collapse. She learned a little bit later when we were talking to her that the fiance of her sister with whom the sister had been driving had just shown up at work. She was so relieved. She was just crying. Her tears went from tears of agony to tears of joy.

So, this is just an unbelievable story and really, really heart- wrenching -- Don.

LEMON: Yes, it is heart-wrenching. And you know what, Allan? It's good to get at least one bit of good news out of this. Thank you so much for that update.

And I think at that press conference really the thing that caught me most was the sheriff saying you know what, this is a terrible, terrible mess. We don't know how many people are still in that river. We don't know how many cars are still in that river.

So, they have still got a lot of work cut out for them, Kyra. A lot more to do here. A lot of unanswered questions about exactly why it fell. But, really, the important part, the important part, is helping these people at least try to get some, I hate to use the word closure, but that's what it is. At least they will know what happened to their family members, to try to get some sort of closure on this situation, at least find out where their family members are at this point -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: We will continue to follow the diving operations and check in with you.

Don, thanks so much.

There were wives and mothers, husbands and fathers heading home after a day of work. And of the five victims recovered from Wednesday's bridge collapse, we know the identities of four, a heartbreaking outcome for these young women we interviewed yesterday, Ann and Jessica Engebretsen, hoping that their mother had somehow managed to survived. But last evening they got the news that they had feared. Their mother, Sherry, is among the dead.

So, is 36-year-old Patrick Holmes, who married his high school sweetheart 12 years ago. He leaves behind a 6-year-old son and a 4- year-old daughter; 32-year-old Julia Blackhawk had two children, 8- and 9-year-old boys, and was going to school part-time; 29-year-old Artemio Trinidad-Mena was a Mexican citizen who came to this country 10 years ago. His four children range in age from 11 to 2 months.

The Interstate 35-W bridge in Minneapolis carried 141,000 cars and trucks a day. But it also carried signs of a number of problems.

CNN's Randi Kaye has more on what was done about the warning signs.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It may take years for investigators to figure out what brought this bridge down. "Keeping Them Honest," we wanted to know, whatever it was, could it have been prevented?

After all, two reports in the last six years noted this bridge had structural problems.

(on camera): A lot of people watching this, though, would say, how can a bridge that has been rated as structurally deficient still be in business? Help them understand.

DICK STEHLY, CIVIL ENGINEER: That's the maddening part of this. That's the one part of this that's extremely troubling.

KAYE: In 2005, the U.S. Department of Transportation's National Bridge Inventory Database called the bridge structurally deficient and possibly in need of replacement.

This same report shows, on a scale of one to nine, the bridge scored a four in overall structural quality. So, what did Minnesota's Department of Transportation, Mn/DOT, do about it?

DAN DORGAN, MINNESOTA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION: The outcome of that was two choices for Mn/DOT. One was adding plates to strengthen the bridge. The other was to do in-depth inspection of the areas that were thought to be the most susceptible and to verify that no cracks existed in those areas. And we chose the inspection route.

KAYE (on camera): And there's more. The bridge scored just a 50 rating out of 120 overall, which meant replacement may have been in order.

So, why was the state of Minnesota, all the way up to the governor's office, telling us this bridge was safe? Governor Tim Pawlenty said the bridge got a clean bill of health in 2005 and 2006. Even the U.S. Department of Transportation is defending Mn/DOT. MARY PETERS, U.S. SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION: It was no means an indication that this bridge was not safe. None of those ratings indicated that there was -- there was any kind of danger here. It simply says, we need to schedule this bridge for rehabilitation.

KAYE (voice-over): Four years before that report, in 2001, University of Minnesota researchers published this report: "Fatigue Evaluation of the Deck Truss of Bridge 9340." They found: "The bridge's deck truss system has not experienced fatigue cracking, but it has many poor fatigue details on the main truss and the floor truss system. If one member were severed by a fatigue crack, that plane of the main truss would theoretically collapse," just like what happened Wednesday.

Yet, the report concluded, "Fatigue cracking is not expected during the remaining useful life of the bridge."

Again, Mn/DOT inspected the bridge, which 141,000 people use daily.

DORGAN: At the time, we thought that the inspections and the information we had were adequate and satisfactory that we were comfortable the bridge was fit for service. And, once again, of course, we -- we found that to be untrue.

KAYE: Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board will be studying these reports as they try to figure out what went wrong here.

Civil engineer Dick Stehly says, fatigue cracking, even corrosion, are easy to miss.

STEHLY: Cracking may be painted over, and you can't see cracks. In reinforced concrete, there can be some corrosion that wouldn't you see because it's underneath.

KAYE: Stehly isn't pointing fingers at Mn/DOT, but at the system overall. The time has come, he says, to raise the bar for safety.

STEHLY: It's not acceptable to have a bridge fall down. So, yes, it must. And the engineering community and the transportation community has let the public down. People have been killed because of this -- this catastrophic failure. We can't let it happen again.

KAYE: Randi Kaye, CNN, Minneapolis, Minnesota.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: People might naturally worry that a bridge collapse like this one in Minneapolis could happen where they live. CNN.com has been looking into this.

And Veronica De La Cruz of the dot-com desk has some information to help you out.

Actually, one of my producers, Angie Massie (ph), said, did you see the CNN.com connection where you can go to all the various sites and actually go to your own state and see a report card...

VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Yes.

PHILLIPS: ... and see the status of roads and bridges?

DE LA CRUZ: And I'm sure so many people are curious at this point.

Let's just go ahead and put this into perspective. We're learning out that, of the 600,000 bridges that exist in the United States, about one-quarter of them are structurally deficient. Now, many of them are decades old. Time, weather and traffic have taken their toll. The Federal Highway Administration now estimates that about 77,000 of them are structurally deficient or functionally obsolete.

Now, Kyra, I'm going to show you how the bridges in your state measure up. CNN.com has put together this interactive map of bridges state by state. To get there, you want to go to CNN.com, find the bridge collapse story titled "Leadership, Money Key to Building Bridges." You want to scroll down the page until you see red text that says "Problem bridges in your state."

Once you get there, you click, and it brings up the interactive map of the states. What you want to do is roll your mouse over each one. And that reveals the data.

Let's go ahead and start with Minnesota, for example; 13 percent of the bridges there are deemed structurally deficient. Other states, Kyra, are much higher. Check this out. This is New York, 37 percent. Now, if you want to scroll down to more information, you click there, and that's going to bring up a spreadsheet of federal bridge data state by state.

And tomorrow and on "CNN SATURDAY MORNING," we are going to explain ways to find out exactly where those bridges exist in your area. So, you really want to pay attention to the local media. I have been kind of combing through different newspapers.

"San Jose Mercury News," for example, says that the Bay Area Bridge is deemed safe. But "The New York Times" is saying that the Brooklyn Bridge has a poor rating. So, something that you want to pay attention to for sure.

And Josh Lez (ph), we are putting him to work. And he's going to get us a list of the biggest bridges, the most important bridges, and he will have that list for us tomorrow morning.

PHILLIPS: Good, because people really want to know how can I look at my own home state?

DE LA CRUZ: Exactly.

PHILLIPS: Especially when there's thousands and thousands of bridges in some of these states.

DE LA CRUZ: Yes, 600,000 bridges. So...

PHILLIPS: Wow, in the entire nation?

DE LA CRUZ: Mm-hmm.

PHILLIPS: Oh, my goodness.

All right, thanks a lot, Veronica.

Well, structurally deficient, words that corrode confidence when they describe bridges. But is a deficient bridge an unsafe bridge? We have an expert to talk about that -- coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Let's get straight to the newsroom, T.J. Holmes working details on a developing story -- T.J.

HOLMES: Hey there, Kyra.

We have a delay. The shuttle, space shuttle Endeavour is not going to be taking off on time, going to be pushed back by a day. It was supposed to take off next Tuesday, going to take off now next Wednesday at 6:38 p.m. Eastern time.

The issue here, they found a leak, a leak in the cabin. And they traced it back to one of two pressure-relief valves that was in the crew cabin. They wanted to check that out. Well, it turns out they were going to pull it out of the Atlantis shuttle and put it in this one to replace it, then a couple other issues crop up here and there. Just, it became too much, and they were just in such a rush, that they just wanted to go ahead and delay it by a day.

So, now the space shuttle Endeavour, which is taking off on a mission to the International Space Station, will actually take off next Wednesday 6:38, instead of Tuesday.

Also, this story we have been watching out of New York today. This strange-looking thing, a submarine-type thing, it was spotted near a security zone around the Queen Mary 2, and three men now in custody now. There was talk about or some concern it might have been terror-related. Got word that it was not, but, still, kind of a strange story.

Our Ali Velshi is all over this strange story for us in New York.

Ali, what is this thing?

ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is strange.

I don't know if you have had a picture of it yet, but it looks like a Crock-Pot, really. It's about eight feet big and it's a replica of an 18th century submersible thing is the best thing I can tell you about this.

The Queen Mary 2, luxurious cruise ship, ready to set sail in a couple hours for Halifax, Nova Scotia. There are normally police around the docks in New York, obviously. And this detective sees these two guys on an inflatable boat towing this submersible device.

They arrest these three guys. They bring them in. Obviously, because of heightened security concerns all across the country, particularly in New York, there was some sense that they needed to check this whole thing out. So, the New York police were investigating. The Department of Homeland Security got involved.

In the end it turns out, at least they're telling us, no ties to terrorism whatsoever. The New York police commissioner, T.J., is talking about the fact that it was probably some marine mischief as he calls it.

Take a look at this thing. I got to tell you, good on the detective because if I were the guy looking at this thing floating by, I would think, I don't know what it is. It looks like a big soup pot.

This is some kind of 18th century device. It doesn't look like it was capable of doing much anyway. We don't know whether these guys are going to be charged. Initially there was some talk they would be charged on a number of counts. Now we're hearing from the police unclear as to what this is about. But they think it was adventurous behavior and a little bit of mischief, nothing serious, nothing to worry about.

And the folks on the cruise ship getting ready to sail in a few minutes. Everything is fine.

HOLMES: All right.

VELSHI: T.J.

HOLMES: And I understand this thing dates back to the Revolutionary War times. And marine mischief.

VELSHI: Yes.

HOLMES: What in the world were these guys -- any idea what these guys might have been doing? They were just out there messing around, playing around? Why in the world would have this or have a replica? What in the world are they doing?

VELSHI: One wonders what they were doing, and, in fact, no idea whatsoever.

We do think that this is a replica of -- the submersible that it copies was actually a 1776 thing. I got no other word for it. I don't know what it is. I'm looking at and it talking about it. It's a submersible thing.

Don't know what they were doing and I bet you it's going to be an interesting story. And I will stay on it. And when I do find out, I will let you know.

HOLMES: All right. And when you come up with other names for it, Ali, we will appreciate it. But "thing" works right now.

VELSHI: All right.

HOLMES: Ali Velshi for us on the scene, thank you so much for walking us through that.

(CROSSTALK)

HOLMES: Kyra, a couple of things we have been watching over here at the breaking news desk. And Ali Velshi wrapping it up with the thing -- back to you.

PHILLIPS: All right. Can never get enough of that Ali Velshi.

HOLMES: Yes.

PHILLIPS: Thanks, T.J.

HOLMES: Yes.

PHILLIPS: All right. Well, we have heard a lot of technical terms in the past two days, including the ominous sounding functionally obsolete and structurally deficient. What do they really mean?

Let's ask Dr. William Ibbs. He's a structural engineer at Cal Berkeley.

And, Doctor, if something like this is perfect class discussion for your students, yes?

WILLIAM (r)MD+IT¯(r)MD-IT¯IBBS, CONSTRUCTION ENGINEER: Yes, it is.

First of all, if I may, just a small correction. I'm a professor of construction engineering, not structural engineering.

But your lead-in there, the difference between structurally deficient and functionally obsolete are an important distinction for engineers. Functionally insufficient or functionally obsolete would relate to the usability, such as the amount of cars, the traffic congestion on the roadway.

Structural deficiency would relate to the physical characteristics of the bridge itself. Is it strong enough to withstand a collapse or is it weak?

PHILLIPS: Now, see, Dr. Ibbs, the fact that we got structural and construction, we didn't get the right title, it shows how confusing and how, you know, a word we think may be so simple has a very complex meaning, including your title.

(LAUGHTER)

IBBS: Right. PHILLIPS: But let's talk about structurally deficient, OK? Because this is what is rocking everybody right now. We heard that it had all these structurally deficient items in these inspections that were made. So, how do you gauge the danger factor? How do you know if something that is structurally deficient is deadly or not?

IBBS: Well, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, AASHTO, has what they call a sufficiency rating index. And that index takes into account the physical characteristics of a bridge, the structural characteristics.

It takes into consideration the functionality and then it takes into consideration other factors. So, they have a bunch of criteria that they use to compile this index. Nevertheless that index is still based upon judgment by inspectors and engineers and other professionals.

And what I worry about is when you look at 50 states and you look at different regions within a state, and you look at different inspectors operating within each of those regions and each of those states, there's a lot of room for variability. Even if everybody's well-intentioned, you can get a lot of inconsistency over what a rating of 63 means in Southern California vs. 63 in Northern California.

PHILLIPS: OK, I'm going to ask you about the ratings in just a minute.

But when we get back to these structurally deficient items, what was found in Minnesota? They -- they talked about this in the news conference, corrosion of bearings, corrosion of steel around the joints, fatigue and cracks.

IBBS: Yes.

PHILLIPS: When you hear structural deficiencies like that, does that concern you, or do you think to yourself, that's normal?

IBBS: No, a certain amount of it is normal. But it does concern me.

The reports, as your correspondents -- the prior reports as your correspondents have been citing over the past day-and-a-half did give us some warning signs that there might have been excessive or abnormal amounts of fatigue and excessive amounts of corrosion in this particular structure.

So, yes, I would have been concerned, not only because of what the reports were telling us, but also because of how the bridge was used. It carried 140,000 vehicles a day, cars and trucks. And it was a main thoroughfare into the city of Minneapolis. So, the prominence of the bridge, the importance of the bridge to the city, as well as to the vast number of people, would be another -- another factor I would take into consideration.

PHILLIPS: OK. And there are not national guidelines for these inspections, correct? It's up to each state on how to inspect and who inspects; is that right?

IBBS: Well, I think that's a bit of an overstatement. There are national guidelines, but the guidelines are not very tight, not very well defined, in my judgment.

(CROSSTALK)

PHILLIPS: So, these need to be defined?

IBBS: Absolutely. I think there needs to be more definition assigned to each of the different criteria.

PHILLIPS: And then finally the ratings. I mean, this bridge was a four. We were told that nine means excellent. There are 77 other bridges across the nation that have the same rating as this Minneapolis bridge. Does that concern you?

IBBS: It certainly does. We have got so many bridges in this country that low ratings is a wakeup call for us.

PHILLIPS: Doctor William Ibbs, sure appreciate your time.

IBBS: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: Smiling face of a jogger who calls Minnesota home, shocked by what happened just after she passed under a bridge on her running route. Hear this woman's story in her own words, a message that's circulating around the country.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, it's the new buzzword in business and it can even improve your health. In today's "Fit Nation," Dr. Sanjay Gupta investigates a new health trend that employees can really get into.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pop all of the balloons! Pop all the balloons!

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Balloon races, broom races, and guessing games.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: First place!

GUPTA: Sounds more like summer camp than a meeting at ING Direct, an online financial services company. The reason? Happier, more productive employees.

JOY ZABEN, ING DIRECT: You think about employees as more than just in their work environment, their entire -- their stress level, their health. I mean, this got them up and moving around.

GUPTA: Many corporations want employees to step away from their cubicles and enjoy themselves. One way is to make them laugh. David Raymond organizes seminars on workplace fun. He says it creates camaraderie and keeps workers active.

DAVID RAYMOND, THE FUN DEPARTMENT: We want to make sure it's appropriate and easy for everybody to participate, but we want some of the things to be physically challenging.

GUPTA: Employees feel more energetic.

CORRINE LESTER, HAPPY EMPLOYEE: Having fun activities allows you to have a better frame of mind when you're working.

GUPTA: And there could be real health benefits as well. Research shows laughter can help blood flow, preventing diseases such as hardening of the arteries, high blood pressure and strokes.

DR. MIKE MILLER, UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND MEDICAL CTR.: When we have a good laugh, or we feel very relaxed, it, in a way, helps us to rejuvenate.

GUPTA: It also reduces stress shown to be a primary factor when it comes to weight gain and heart problems.

Other ways to encourage happy workers? Well, Google provides activities like volleyball and scooters on the job. Other companies even allow pets in the office. All aimed at keeping employees relaxed, and more productive.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Smiling face of a jogger who calls Minnesota home, shocked by what happened just after she passed under a bridge on her running route. Hear the woman's story in her own words. The message that's circulating around the country.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, we're told that Mississippi River currents are even more treacherous than they were yesterday, but the hard work continues at the site of the Minneapolis bridge collapse. Our Don Lemon is back on the job for us now -- Don.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, and we're interviewing people, Kyra, who really helped out so much in this. We can call them heroes. We always talk about "CNN Heroes." Well, this guy you can say is a "CNN Hero" as well as an American hero.

Your fire station -- his name is Raul Ramose. And I want to make sure i get your fire station correct. You're with Rescue -- the Minneapolis Fire Department Rescue 9 Hazmat, correct?

RAUL RAMOSE, MINNEAPOLIS FIRE DEPT.: Yes.

LEMON: About a minute-and-a-half away from this bridge or shortly, you heard some of the rumble and then immediately, you said within a minute, a minute-and-a-half, you were on the scene. We've been talking about the divers in that water. You're not a diver, but you jumped in with your equipment anyway.

RAMOSE: We sure did. We got there probably a minute-and-a half after you -- after we got the call. We saw the dust settling. We set up at first on the upper part of the bridge. And we noticed that we needed more down below. So half my crew split up, went to help some people onshore. And then I went down in a Mustang Suit and got in the water.

LEMON: Yes. I want to talk about that. We have a picture of what you're calling a Mustang Suit. Because everyone thought you were a diver. If you read all the news accounts and you hear about your story from the people who are telling it out here near the scene, they are calling a you a diver. But you do ice rescues as part of your rescue training. But you happened to have that equipment with you. And when you realized people were in that water, you jumped in. Tell us about that.

RAMOSE: Yes, exactly that. We noticed people were underwater. And we've trained in those suits before, so I threw one on. I cut it off and went in the water and came along the first submersed car, which I reached in and felt there was a victim. Along with the help of Minneapolis Fire -- a Minneapolis police officer, we pried the door open. Got the victim out. I cut her seat belt. Went under water, cut her seat belt out and brought her to shore.

At that time, P.D. said that she had a pulse. I went back in and helped the rest of the Minneapolis Fire and Minneapolis Police Department that were on the island.

LEMON: Do you know if that person you survived, the one that you pulled?

RAMOSE: We're still trying to find out.

LEMON: Still trying -- after a minute or two minutes, her being in that water, you felt around. Obviously you couldn't see.

RAMOSE: No, there was no visibility.

LEMON: So you're feeling around and you feel this body, you feel this person. You cut her seat belt out and you pull her to shore, and then the rest of the story?

RAMOSE: The rest of the story. Minneapolis P.D. and EMS took over her rescuing. Tried to get her back. And I went back to the island -- what I'm calling the island, the concrete slab that's in the middle of the river. And I helped the rest of my fellow firefighters load three people on the stretchers and get them on boats. And 15 to 20 people on the boats that were minor injuries.

LEMON: Yes. Since you were in that water, and we've been talking a lot today about the conditions the divers were facing, they have been talking about, you know, four to six inches only in visibility. You're saying zero. You saw nothing. Tell us about the currents and all of the hazards and debris and what have you that water when you were in there. RAMOSE: During the early time when we first got there, it was filled with gasoline and oils. And at the spot where the car was, there was -- I would say a soft current at that time.

Later on that night when I went back in to do a search of a couple more vehicles on the north side, it had picked up a lot more. I don't know if it was because of where the bridge was or why it was. But it definitely picked up later on that night.

LEMON: Raul Ramose, we're calling you a hero. Thank you so much joining us and thanks for what you do and for helping people out. And if you hear about the young lady that you pulled out and cut the seat belt off who was under water, will you please let us know how she's doing?

RAMOSE: Sure will, take care.

LEMON: All right. Thank you very much.

Kyra, there you go. People who selflessly jump in to help others out. Not everyone can do that. And not everyone has the heart to do it, or the courage or the guts to do it. And if you were in that situation -- not sure what I would do. I would like to think that I might, but you never know. These guys did it.

PHILLIPS: I'd love to talk to that woman and Ramose together. Don, thanks so much. Wow.

Well, it's going to be a while before we know what brought the Minneapolis bridge down, even longer before it's rebuilt. But what can we learn from Louisiana? Sean Callebs takes a closer look, ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, several governors are ordering bridge inspections a top priority, bridges with a similar design to the Minneapolis bridge, such as this one on Interstate 40 near White Pine Tennessee. State inspectors are busy in Massachusetts, too. There are 32 bridges in that state similar to the one in Minneapolis, including this one in Revere. A same scenario is playing out today on Interstate 70 in Cooksville, Maryland, as well.

What happened in four seconds this week in Minneapolis will take years to repair. And that's if everything moves quickly. We've been watching that scenario play out in Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina.

CNN's Sean Callebs reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The I-10 Bridge is just one of hundreds in this state considered structurally deficient. It suffered severe damage in Hurricane Katrina and now nearly two years later is still held together with patchwork repairs. But if you look in the foreground, a new bridge is going up. However, the old bridge, the repairs are so tenuous, engineers must inspect it every single day. So for people in this area, the new bridge can't be done soon enough.

(voice-over): Hurricane Katrina proved too much for Interstate 10's twin span bridge in Louisiana. The massive 30-foot storm surge lifted the bridge right off its pilings in some areas and misaligned it in others, cutting off a vital route between the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain and New Orleans.

Now officials are building what they hope is a bigger, better hurricane-resistant bridge.

MARK LAMBERT, LA DEPT OF TRANSPORTATION: The bridge is going to be higher. It's going to be about 30 feet off the water, as opposed to the old bridge, which was about eight to 10 feet. Each span will be wider. It will carrying three lanes instead of two lanes.

CALLEBS: By building the bridge higher, officials say they will avoid treacherous storm surges like the one during Katrina. And the new bridge will be solid. Engineers say workers are using a higher performance, high-strength concrete that will resist saltwater corrosion and withstand wind and water loads.

JOHN HORN, ENGINEER: Significant reinforcing steel between all portions of the bridge, which is unusual for this type of construction. They've never been designed for uplift forces in the past and this one is specifically designed for uplift forces.

CALLEBS: All this technology comes at a price, $803 million. The largest public works project in Louisiana history.

(on camera): The federal government is picking up the entire cost of this project. But drivers will have to use the old bridge for some time to come. Construction on the new bridge is not slated to be finished until 2012.

Sean Callebs, CNN, Slidell, Louisiana.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: The smiling face of a jogger who calls Minnesota home, shocked by what happened just after she passed under a bridge on her running route. Hear this woman's story in her own words. A message that's circulating around the country. That's straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Well, you know, every survivor's story is really unique. But probably no story is getting as much attention as Lori Peterson's. She was jogging underneath that bridge, that overpass, when it collapsed. And she forwarded an e-mail to her family and her friends to let them know that she was OK. And that e-mail is just getting forwarded around the world. Let me just read a snippet of that e-mail from you. She said: "I was a few hundred feet on the other side when I heard this terrible, loud explosion and continued creaking and felt the rumble. I turned and saw the big cloud of dust and water. And could only imagine that they were testing dynamite or something until the dust began to clear. And then it took a moment for my mind to register that what had happened. It was eerily still and quiet, like a movie set." Like a movie set. Lori Peterson joins me now.

You were jogging. You were running. You were in that zone. You didn't know you were in danger when you went under that bridge. You had no idea.

LORI PETERSON, SURVIVED BRIDGE COLLAPSE: I had no idea. And I think it hit me this morning that when I was under the bridge, from the stories, it sounds like it may have been creaking or moving slightly, and I really -- I obviously wasn't paying any attention until even when I first heard the noise I didn't immediately turn around because it just seemed like it must have been construction or like I said, I thought it was dynamite or something.

LEMON: And you -- what was your reaction? Did you walk back and go, oh, my gosh? Did you try to get as far away from it as possible?

PETERSON: No, I turned around. And when the dust settled and you could tell what had happened, then it became very clear. And other people, it was just like a magnet. And people were drawn to it. And that's when the incredible emotions started hitting and realizing what exactly had happened.

And, you know, it -- seeing the people starting to open their car doors and getting out and, as I said, it was just so eerily silent. And I remember it seemed like a long time until we heard a siren. And then a lone police car on the other side of the river came into view. And then it -- then things started happening very suddenly.

LEMON: And you said that you ended up at a park, which is very near the collapse. And you, instead of just standing there, what did you do? You started yelling to people?

PETERSON: Well, I was standing at Gold Medal Park, and there was probably 50 people or so there, and I felt this incredible urge to pray, and not to pray by myself, but to ask others to join in. And it took me three or four times of turning towards the crowd, and the words would come out and then I got embarrassed. And I finally said it out loud.

LEMON: What did you say to them?

PETERSON: I raised my hands and I said, does anyone want to pray for the people on the bridge? And everybody kind of looked at me like I was crazy. And no one said anything or moved. And then I didn't know what to do. So, I just yelled it again. And I think I yelled it a third time and finally a young woman who I would love to know who it was raised her hand. She had on a Twins T-shirt and she said, I want to pray. And she walked over to me. And that was like the permission for everyone else to join in.

LEMON: Tell us what happened after that, what did you say? Did you say the Lord's Prayer? Did you say a personal prayer? What did you say?

PETERSON: I just said a personal prayer. And it just -- we just prayed for the people on the bridge. And we prayed for the firefighters and the rescue people, that they would be able to get to them quickly and help them. And we prayed for all the family members and friends that were probably worrying about their loved ones that could have been would or near the bridge. It wasn't a very long prayer. And, you know, when it was over, you just felt a lot better.

LEMON: Yes. And everyone joined in. And did you guys pray out loud?

PETERSON: I just prayed out lout. And then we all -- you know, we said amen, and then everyone dispersed and no one -- you know, we didn't get our names of each other and that's when I wanted to get home and find my husband and find out if my son was home.

LEMON: It makes you realize really just how tenuous it is and how quickly things can change from one second to the next.

PETERSON: Well, and you know, I work with -- at State Farm and we deal with tragedy every day. And it's what happens after the tragedy that's really the most important. And it just is kind of a touchstone of what you need to be doing in your life.

LEMON: Lori Peterson. Thank you so much for joining us.

PETERSON: Thank you.

LEMON: And thank you for your prayers, for everyone involved in that. We are sure that they helped.

Kyra, you know, another amazing story. Every time I interview someone, a family member of someone who was there and they tell me this incredible story, these incredible stories, it's kind of hard to even wrap it up and say how you're feeling.

(CROSSTALK)

PHILLIPS: Sure. Power of the human spirit. Bottom line.

LEMON: ... being on that bridge, of being there. Absolutely. Absolutely, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, Don, thanks. We're going to have the closing bell and a wrap of action on Wall Street straight ahead. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: Well, a guy gets ticked at work. He may be admired for standing his ground, but a woman, she's likely to be written off as out of control or even incompetent. Argue the point if you want, but those conclusions are being presented this weekend at a meeting of a group representing about 17,000 managers and other professionals. And in case you're wondering, a woman compiled the research. Now I'd like to point out one other thing in a nice professional manner. The study shows that angry women make a lot less than their disgruntled male counterparts.

So what do you say about -- that you've given birth to your 17th baby? Well, if you're Michelle Duggar, you say you'd love to have more. Eight-pound, eight-ounce, Jennifer Danielle has six big sisters and 10 big brothers ranging in age from 2 to 19. All the kids have names beginning with J, and all are homeschooled, by the way. Husband Jim Bob is a former member of the Arkansas legislature. If he ever decides to run for office again, he'll know exactly where to look for votes.

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

PHILLIPS: Now let's take it to Wolf Blitzer in THE SITUATION ROOM -- Wolf.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks, Kyra.

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