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Paula Zahn Now

At Least Four Dead in Minnesota Bridge Collapse; America's Aging Infrastructure

Aired August 02, 2007 - 20:00   ET

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

PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Tonight, we have got to get back to the breaking news. It's a story that none of us really wants to be covering, the Minneapolis bridge tragedy. Dozens of people may still be missing, as all of us ask, why did a major bridge suddenly just fall down?
Also survivors, dramatic firsthand accounts from people who were on the bridge and made it out alive after it collapsed under them.

And decades-old and obsolete, why are so many of America's bridges falling apart, and just how many of them are on a list tonight that you should be aware of?

Well, we're going to spend the whole night focusing on the tragedy in Minnesota.

Tonight, the official death toll is four, but we are told that number will rise. Officials estimate that 20 to 30 people are still missing, based on the number of cars still under seven feet of murky water in the Mississippi River. Families are still searching desperately for missing loved ones.

We still don't know why this happened tonight. We may not know for a very long time. But, barely an hour ago, the federal Transportation Department sent out an alert urging every state in the country to inspect bridges built like the one in Minneapolis. And get this. There are 750 of them.

Now, tonight, we do have video of that collapse. This is extraordinary to watch. You can see exactly what happens. Just look at the surveillance tape. The bridge is in the upper-right part of the picture. First, one section falls, as you can see. Then a huge cloud of dust follows. And, slowly, the dust begins to clear.

And then almost as suddenly as before another part of the bridge goes down and more dust rises. It is a chilling image.

And today, the National Transportation Safety Board says it is a major clue for them as they try to find out why this happened.

Our Susan Roesgen is in Minneapolis tonight. And she joins me now with some of those details.

What have you learned, Susan?

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN GULF COAST CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Well, you know, Paula, in addition to that video, the National Transportation Safety Board investigators will be poring over years worth of maintenance records on this bridge and also will be checking with the Coast Guard to see if perhaps a boat hit this bridge sometime in the past and whether or not that might have weakened the bridge.

But the first priority is finding the victims.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They are just completely mangled, and I would be shocked if anybody survived.

ROESGEN (voice-over): The Mississippi is just seven or eight feet deep here, but the water is so dark, divers can't even see the sunken cars, much less the unknown number of victims still inside.

CAPT. SHANNA HANSON, MINNEAPOLIS FIRE DEPARTMENT: I was a little concerned about unstable stuff underneath me that I couldn't see. But, being that the cars hadn't moved from the time they had gone in to when I was going in to them to check them -- we are trained to do the job. You just kind of go in and do it. You don't think about it much until afterwards.

ROESGEN: They are using GPS and sonar technology, but the careful recovery could go on for days.

In the meantime, state officials are on the defensive, trying explain why the bridge was allowed to stay open years after engineers first found structural problems.

GOV. TIM PAWLENTY (R), MINNESOTA: I think there was a view that the bridge was ultimately and eventually going to need to be replaced. But it appears, from the information that we have available, that the timeline for that was not immediate or imminent.

ROESGEN: This is the actual collapse of the bridge, showing the six-story fall. Investigators say these images could be key to figuring out what happened.

MARK ROSENKER, CHAIRMAN, NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD: That's the equivalent in getting a cockpit voice recorder or a flight data recorder. Without -- without this video, we would be working kind of in the real-time blind. This is going to show us what happened and the amount of time, where it began, where this failure began.

ROESGEN: This bridge collapse may be a warning. There may be other old bridges across the country that need to be inspected, a warning drivers here never had.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There is an individual case where an individual was severely -- obviously, severely injured, and was talking to medical personnel, and was able to say his goodbyes to his family. And then he passed on.

(END VIDEOTAPE) ROESGEN: And that is one of many heartbreaking stories here, Paula.

But, again, as you mentioned, that warning about older bridges, about crumbling infrastructure, has gone all the way to Washington. And federal officials have said now that they want an immediate inspection of every bridge similar to this one -- Paula.

ZAHN: I am holding that list right now. And it is stunning -- in the state of Ohio, 187 bridges, California, 59. It's really scary.

Let me ask you this. There's another very troubling thing that we heard from the sheriff, that they are considering this disaster scene also a potential crime scene. What does that mean exactly?

ROESGEN: Well, you know, I asked the sheriff about that, Paula. And he said it's not because they believe that foul play was involved. They don't believe that anybody intentionally did anything to lead to this bridge collapse. But he says that, by calling it a crime scene, that allows him to really tighten up the access to it, keep people away, and do a better job of getting the evidence.

ZAHN: Susan Roesgen, keep us posted on anything else you learn. Thanks.

Now I want to bring in someone who is absolutely lucky to be alive tonight.

Melissa Hughes was driving on the bridge at the exact moment it gave way. Before we talk with her, take a look at this incredible picture.

You are shortly going to see in the background, after this bridge gives way, Melissa's red Ford Escort. This isn't quite synchronized, but there's the shot. You can see the Ford Escort crushed underneath a pickup truck.

The baby in the picture is Melissa's daughter. The little girl didn't happen to be in the car when the bridge collapsed, but was brought to the scene just after it happened.

And Melissa Hughes, along with her family, joins me tonight from Minneapolis.

I guess you will be saying a lot of prayers tonight, won't you, Melissa?

MELISSA HUGHES, BRIDGE COLLAPSE SURVIVOR: Oh, yes. Yes, definitely.

ZAHN: Describe to us exactly what it felt like as that bridge started to give way.

HUGHES: I felt a freefall feeling twice in a row. And then I felt a terrible crash, which I later -- or I was realized was the back of my car. The back window was blown out. Later, I realized that that was a vehicle landing on top of my car.

ZAHN: Clearly, you had to worry about being crushed to death. What did you do at that point?

HUGHES: I was frantic. I was looking for my telephone, because I wanted to call my husband right away. And I had a hard time finding it.

(CROSSTALK)

ZAHN: Well, let's forget about finding the phone for a moment. How did you get out of the car with a truck on top of you like that?

HUGHES: I didn't realize there was a truck on top of me. A civilian came and asked me if I was OK and opened up the door and got me out of the car and walked me down to the street that was below us.

ZAHN: How long do you think all of that took?

HUGHES: It felt like it was probably five minutes, but, according to my caller I.D., I called my husband at 6:06, which was a minute or two after it happened.

ZAHN: I'm sure that's a time that's going to be forever sealed in his mind.

We're going to show that picture of you with you and your beautiful baby daughter.

HUGHES: Thank you.

ZAHN: And we mentioned that your husband brought her to you when he realized you were alive and had been rescued.

Was there a point during that brief moment in time when you were living in terror that you thought you may not ever see her again, that you might not live?

HUGHES: That didn't go through my head at the time. But, afterwards, all I wanted to do was hold her.

I didn't cry until we were together. That was when I finally was able to be emotional about it.

ZAHN: Well, you are entitled to many, many tears. And we are so happy to be able to share...

(CROSSTALK)

ZAHN: ... at least one positive ray of hope out of this horrible story.

Melissa Hughes, thank you so much. Good luck to you and your whole family. HUGHES: Thank you.

ZAHN: Meanwhile, tonight, emergency crews in Minneapolis are still searching for more victims. There are dozens of cars still underwater, murky water. And the police chief says he thinks there are 20 that still can't be seen under the bridge. And families throughout the Twin Cities area are waiting for word on loved ones and hoping.

They gathered at a hotel ballroom near the bridge where the Red Cross set up a family assistance center.

And CNN's Don Lemon spoke with one family earlier today, the Engebretsens, father Ron and his two daughters. The girls said they were praying that their mom was simply alive and unidentified at a hospital.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANN ENGEBRETSEN, MOTHER IS MISSING: My mom's a fighter. She will make it.

JESSICA ENGEBRETSEN, MOTHER IS MISSING: She's really strong.

A. ENGEBRETSEN: She's a strong woman. She's going to come back home. She's going to be home.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Did she teach you about strength?

J. ENGEBRETSEN: Yep.

LEMON: To say strong now?

A. ENGEBRETSEN: Every single day. I'm 20 years old, and she still is teaching me how to be a strong person, a strong woman, and to be independent and -- but also how to love, and just be there for the people you love.

LEMON: You?

J. ENGEBRETSEN: Yep, my mom is one big fighter. I know she can get through this. She's just somewhere where we can't see her right now. She's just waiting.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZAHN: Clearly, a woman surrounded by a lot of love.

I am very sad to report, though, barely an hour ago, we found out that their mom, Sherry Engebretsen, did in fact die in the collapse.

I want to turn now to one the people in charge of the search for victims, Minneapolis Fire Chief Jim Clack.

Thank you so much for joining us, Mr. Clack. I know it has been a nightmare to do the work you have had to do. Describe to us the heartbreaking moment when the search-and- rescue turned to a recovery mission.

JIM CLACK, MINNEAPOLIS FIRE CHIEF: Well, thank you, Paula, for having me tonight.

Yes, it was an emotional event for our department. And I want to say, first of all, our hearts and minds go out to all those families that are still waiting to hear about loved ones.

It was a relatively quick rescue process. The rescue phase of this emergency only lasted six hours, from the time the bridge collapsed at 6:00 last night until midnight. And then it turned into a recovery operation. And we're continuing with that right now at a very slow pace.

ZAHN: And you have got a lot of challenges there with the murky waters of the Mississippi. What are you up against there with all of that debris?

CLACK: Well, the sheriff's department here has the divers. And they are really challenged. This is one of the most technical and difficult dives they have had to do.

The river is very murky. There's a lot of current in the river, and that's been exacerbated by the fact that that bridge is in the river, which creates under currents and back-currents. And they are trying to be very careful not to get somebody hurt or killed.

ZAHN: Not only that. They have to deal with the emotional trauma surrounding them. How are all those rescue workers holding up?

CLACK: Well, remarkably well, Paula. They are doing a great job under difficult circumstances.

And it is a very emotionally draining experience for rescue workers.

ZAHN: What is being done to help the families who are still holding out hope that they might be reunited with loved ones that are missing at this hour?

CLACK: Well, the Red Cross here in Minneapolis is doing a great job with the family assistance center. In fact, that's where we are tonight, on the roof of the family assistance center here in Minneapolis.

They have done a great job today matching up people with victims in the hospital. And I'm happy to report our missing person total is going down, as they're able to do that. And so that's been some great effort. And we're very proud to be partnering with the Red Cross.

ZAHN: Chief Clack, you have been exposed to a lot of devastating things on the job. What has been the hardest part of this disaster for you?

CLACK: Well, I think the sheer magnitude of the size of this collapse.

You know, we haven't had an event like this in Minneapolis for many, many years. In fact, I have been here for 21 years on the fire department and we have never had anything of this scale. And so it taxes the resources of our local fire department, police department.

But I want to say that our mutual aid partners around the Twin Cities have been great. Saint Paul has been great. And we have gotten plenty of help. In fact at one point last night, we had too many responders here. So, we have done a real good job. I think the event has went very well from our standpoint.

ZAHN: Well, we wish you continued good luck under such challenging circumstances.

Chief Jim Clack, thank you for joining us tonight.

CLACK: Thank you, Paula.

ZAHN: And still ahead, we have the remarkable story of the hero on that school bus we were so intensely focused on at this hour last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEREMY HERNANDEZ, BRIDGE COLLAPSE SURVIVOR: I just heard a big bang and I thought we were in a car accident. But then I felt the bus going down, because I was feeling like I was going over the seat. And then it crashed. Boom. It landed. And then it felt like we kept still going, because it went down again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZAHN: The rescue of dozens of children from the collapsed bridge. You will hear from that hero once again.

Also, we will look at some of the most dramatic pictures of the disaster. They came from you, our I-Reporters.

And of course the disaster raises some new concerns about America's aging roads and bridges, 750 of them on a list you need to be aware of tonight. Are there more disasters just waiting to happen where you live?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JANET STATELY, EYEWITNESS: I heard a horrible noise and then I looked and it seemed like a piece of the bridge was pancaking and going down. And I don't know the order, but -- then there was another section and it sort of went down into a V., and all the cars were going straight down towards the water like they were little tiny, you know, toy cars.

(END VIDEO CLIP) ZAHN: We were all stunned by the descriptions of what it looked like and felt like when that bridge collapsed. But, to me, one of the most terrifying images from this tragedy in Minnesota was the image of that school bus precariously leaning on the guardrail of a broken section of the bridge.

We all wondered what would happen to the children trapped inside. Dozens of children were on that bus. But we are very happy to say they all are safe tonight, thanks to the lightning-fast reaction of one very brave young man.

Allan Chernoff has the story of this amazing rescue.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When the I-35 bridge collapsed, a school bus carrying 61 children, their counselors and driver went plummeting, along with the concrete and steel, a traumatic moment for the kids coming back from a swimming trip.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The bridge collapsed. And we were right on the part where it went down, it curved down.

CHERNOFF: Twenty-year-old counselor Jeremy Hernandez was sleeping just before the plunge.

HERNANDEZ: I just heard a big bang and I thought we were in a car accident. But then I felt the bus going down, because I was feeling like I was going over the seat. And then it crashed. Boom. It landed. And then it felt like we kept still going, because it went down again.

CHERNOFF: The bus was filled with dust. Counselors could barely see the kids, some of whom are preschoolers, but they could hear their cries.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It felt scary, because, first, we thought we crashed, but then we felt like -- we felt us going down.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Did you look out the window? What did -- what were you seeing?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, I didn't look out the window. All I saw was like -- I saw dust everywhere and people were screaming.

HERNANDEZ: My ears were going to pop, because they were screaming so loud. I think that's another reason why I reacted so fast, because they were screaming. And I couldn't -- my head was going to explode. And I was still in shock myself. And then it just hit me, like, we're going to go in the river.

CHERNOFF: If the bus had been two seconds earlier, it would have been in the Mississippi, one second later, and it could have been crushed, like this semi in the next lane. Instead, the bus ended up sitting precariously on a collapsed chunk of roadway. That's when Hernandez sprang into action.

HERNANDEZ: Then I looked over at the river. And then my heart started beating fast. And I just jumped over the seats, and I opened the back of the door. And I kicked the coolers out. And then I turned around and trying to dump kids off the bus.

And all the kids were landing up on the bridge right there by the bus. And I could feel this bridge still shaking, and trying to tell them, you got to get off the bridge. You got to get off the bridge.

And then people are running up to the bridge, like, hand them to me. And I'm handing kids over to the guys.

CHERNOFF (on camera): Fourteen people on the bus suffered injuries. Two adults and two children remain in the hospital, but everyone survived, thanks in large part to the heroism of Jeremy Hernandez.

Allan Chernoff, CNN, Minneapolis.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ZAHN: And when you think about how much peril he put himself in, not knowing whether the rest of that bridge would give way, it makes you appreciate more what an effort he made there.

The feelings of panic and terror that the kids felt on that school bus were captured in one single phone call from 10-year-old Kaleigh Swift to her mother just moments after the bridge fell away.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

(SCREAMING)

KALEIGH SWIFT, BRIDGE COLLAPSE SURVIVOR: Mom, momma, momma, momma, momma, momma, the bridge broke when we were crossing it. Everybody is scared and crying. Are you there, momma? Momma, are you there?

(END AUDIO CLIP)

ZAHN: Oh, my God. Can you imagine getting a call like that?

Well, just a short while ago, I talked with Kaleigh and her mother, Christine Swift.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ZAHN: So, Kaleigh, you are one lucky little girl. It was terrifying to hear that call you made to your mother.

What was going on at the time that you had the presence of mind to call her?

K. SWIFT: Everybody was just scared and crying. Jeremy was trying to calm people down. All the staff were. And it was just really scary. Nobody knew what happened until later, when we actually realized what happened. Everybody was in shock.

ZAHN: Kaleigh, when you look at pictures of the bus, you can see how close it came to going over. How afraid were you that you were going to die?

K. SWIFT: Really afraid, because I had thought that we were over the river, like, over the river, not over land, so I was really scared that we might not make it out, until I realized that we stopped and that we weren't in the water. Then I realized that the semi was next to us, that we almost got pushed over the edge.

ZAHN: It's a miracle it didn't go over the edge. How did you get out?

K. SWIFT: Jeremy had a girl in his arms. And he kicked open the back door, the one on the back of the bus, and he just told everybody, get off the bus, get off the bus.

So, everybody just got off the bus. And then we were over West River Parkway, is where the -- that piece of the bridge landed. So, we -- it was really close to the down -- and there were people down there helping us over the side of the bridge.

ZAHN: Christine, I can't imagine how you felt when you took that phone call. You had to know how much trouble Kaleigh was in.

CHRISTINE SWIFT, MOTHER OF KALEIGH: When the accident happened, the airwaves went crazy. We -- our phones wouldn't work.

We couldn't call anybody. And we were lucky to even get through. She -- the first time she got through was when I got the message. She did get ahold of me right after that.

And my first thought was, the whole bridge couldn't have fallen into the river, that that is just not going to happen. She must be confused about what happened or something. And I tried to calm her down, tried to get her to tell me where she was.

But, because they were up on top on the freeway when the bridge fell, it landed on a regular road underneath it. And she didn't know where she was.

ZAHN: You must have such a tremendous sense of relief and gratefulness tonight.

C. SWIFT: Oh, yes, a whole bunch.

We're very grateful to everybody that helped. It was a chaotic situation. And there was a lot of things going on and people everywhere. And we have never had to deal with that in Minnesota. This was our biggest disaster that we have seen. And, as chaotic as it seemed to me, things were taken care of.

ZAHN: Well, it's a miracle that all of those kids got out of the bus, even though some of them were injured.

And we appreciate your sharing your story with us tonight.

(CROSSTALK)

ZAHN: Good luck to both of you.

C. SWIFT: Sure. Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ZAHN: And coming up next: the first pictures any of us saw of the disaster, the dramatic images of dust, twisted steel, crumbled concrete.

We are going to show you the tragedy through the eyes and lenses of our I-Reporters.

Also, the Minneapolis bridge was 40 years old, new compared to many of America's bridges. Are they also in danger of collapse? Brand-new list out of 750 bridges around the country that the feds have their eyes on. We will look at that coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ZAHN: Tonight, federal investigators are analyzing witness statements to try to identify the causes of this latest deadly bridge disaster.

They are also focusing on two inspection reports. The first one, issued in 2001, said the Minneapolis bridge had many poor fatigue details. Another one done just two years ago concluded the bridge was structurally deficient.

No one may be better qualified to clearly explain those reports and the engineering of that bridge than the host of the TV show "Bill Nye, the Science Guy." Bill Nye is also a licensed mechanical engineer.

It's always a pleasure to see you. Unfortunately, I wish it wasn't under these circumstances tonight.

So, Bill, I'm holding a list that the Transportation Department has just released. And it scares the heck out of you. It says there are 750 bridges across the country that have the same kind of steel arch deck truss that the bridge in Minneapolis had.

What does that mean?

BILL NYE, THE SCIENCE GUY: Well, a truss is the type of bridge where you see those triangles holding it together -- not always triangles, but it's a straight beam held by two ends.

Now, looking at the video -- look, I am 2,000 nautical miles from this thing. And I have not inspected the bridge myself. But there are some fundamental observations you can make about it. And, fundamentally, it broke at the joints, at the ends. And that's probably due to what people call fatigue. And that's -- fatigue is a word you're going to hear a lot, I think, the next few days.

And fatigue is what material scientists call what happens to materials when the load is reversed. So, the bridge is here and it's flexing as cars go over it. So, the middle is where the bridge is going up and down the most, but it's the ends where the slope of the curve is the greatest. It's where -- the ends are where things fail.

And, just nominally, it looks like it may have failed at the shore side first, at the riverbank first. And that might seem surprising. The riverbank might be the strongest part, but that's the part that gets the least flex.

ZAHN: Sure.

NYE: And so, that might be the part...

ZAHN: Let me reinforce...

(CROSSTALK)

NYE: Let's just -- I'm 2,000 miles away, now, but that's what it looks like.

ZAHN: No, I know that. And your plastic ruler was a big help.

But I have got some animation now I think that will further enforce the importance of what you are talking about, because you can see in this that -- that there was supposed to be structural redundancy, that, for example, the bridge wouldn't be dependent on one truss to stand.

How much of a factor do you think that will be?

NYE: Well, this is an old design. What may have happened is material may have been removed. Oh, how is that possible? Through corrosion. You know, if you put salt on the roads for many decades, you start to remove material. Now, there's another vicious circle that happens in materials. If the salt is corroding the steel and removing material, these small cracks form, where you're flexing it, very, very small cracks, almost microscopic, the corrosion then removes material at the crack. Well now, less material is supporting the same load, so there's more stress and the material cracks more and it corrodes more.

Now, I'm not there, I haven't inspected it for corrosion. But that's a very reasonable hypothesis.

No, also there are eyewitness reports -- sorry, go ahead.

ZAHN: Yeah, not, you've been an excellent help, unfortunately I've got to move on. But I think we should all enroll in your science classes. You make this very clear.

NYE: Well, just let me point out that this is a civic work, this is a public work.

ZAHN: Sure.

NYE: When we reduce taxes or funds for funding these things, this is the kind of problem you're going to have.

ZAHN: All right, Bill.

NYE: So, we need to invest in our infrastructure.

ZAHN: Very good point. Bill Nye, again, thanks for your expertise tonight.

When we come back, the Minneapolis disaster through the lenses of our iReporter, they captured some of the first dramatic pictures of the bridge collapse.

Also, are hundreds of bridges in the country catastrophes just waiting to happen? The Minneapolis disaster shining some new light on all of our nation's crumbling bridges. You might be surprised how many of them there are.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ZAHN: And we are back. The deadly bridge collapse in Minneapolis is a frightening reminder of what many say is a crisis in our nation's infrastructure. And tonight, there are new concerns about the safety of bridges and highways all over the county. Parts of our highway system are literally buckling under the weight of increased traffic and congestion. And as Jeanne Meserve reports, bridges around the country may be accidents waiting to happen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge, completed in 1937. New York's Brooklyn Bridge, 1869. The Eads Bridge in St. Louis built in 1874, 133 years ago.

Not only are many of the nation's bridges old, many are in disrepair. A 2005 report by the American Society of Civil Engineers gave them only a grade of "C." More than a quarter need monitoring, major repair or replacement. Some say it's an outrage.

STEVE FLYNN, COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS: Absolutely not doing what needs to be done to make sure our bridges are adequately maintained, are safe and durable to provide the kind of transportation that we need to keep our lives working.

MESERVE: Many of the nation's bridges are at or beyond their life span.

ANDREW COATES, CIVIL ENGINEER: It's the age of the infrastructure, particularly if you look at the interstate highway system, basically built in the '50s and '60s. Those bridges now are getting 40 to 50 years old. MESERVE: And bridges of that era were built without backup systems. As the 1983 failure of the Mianus Bridge in Connecticut tragically demonstrated.

RAE ZIMMERMAN, NYU SCHOOL OF PUBLIC SERVICE: A couple of pins went and that was all that was needed to collapse a segment of that bridge.

MESERVE: Usage is another factor. Today there are more vehicles and heavier vehicles than when most bridges were built.

RAY TUDGE, BRIDGE INSPECTOR: Basically I'm hammering on the bolts and nuts to find out if there's any loose connections.

MESERVE: In the aftermath of the collapse in Minneapolis, the federal government has alerted states to inspect bridges of similar construction.

JOHN PORCARI, SECY MD DEPT TRANSPORTATION: No Marylander should be concerned about the safety of our bridges.

MESERVE: Some experts say, inspection techniques and technologies need to be improved, but most of all, bridges need to be fixed or rebuilt. The Civil engineers group estimates bridges need an investment of $9.4. a year for 20 years. Right now, the get about $2 billion a year from the federal government and construction costs will only get higher the longer they're deferred.

Bridges are not the only problem. The 2005 report card that gave bridges a "C," gave even worse grades to dams, roads, wastewater treatment, and other vital infrastructure.

SEN HARRY REID (D), NEVADA: We have, all over the country, a crumbling infrastructure: highways, bridges, dams. And we need to take a hard look at this.

MESERVE (on camera): The Federal Highway Administration says this is only the second bridge to fail for structural reasons in 20 years. The agency insists most bridges are safe and that those that should be closed will be. But that sadly was not the case in Minneapolis.

Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ZAHN: And we will be taking an in-depth look at this disaster and this country's aging infrastructure. Soledad O'Brien hosts "We Were Warned: Road to Ruin," live from Minneapolis, tomorrow night at 8:00 p.m.

Coming up next, we some of the most dramatic pictures of the bridge collapsing. We're going to look through the eyes of lenses of our i-Reporters who were first on the scene of the tragedy. Wait until you see what they captured. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ZAHN: And we're back. In this age of digital cameras and cell phones that record video, the first reports and images of breaking news often come from people like you who have suddenly become eyewitness to history. Well, that certainly was the case last night. Submissions to CNN's i-Reports were fist seen on the air just 10 minutes after the Minneapolis bridge collapsed. And Cnn.com has been flooded of hundreds of images. Here's Deborah Feyerick with a look at what happened just moments after the disaster as seen through the eyes of the people who were there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Some first heard the noise, others saw the smoke, all grabbed their cameras or cell phones to show those on the outside the tragedy so close to home.

Mark LaCroix called 911 before snapping pictures.

MARK LACROIX, I-REPORTER: I'm in my apartment about 20 stories up, so, I heard this massive rumbling, shaking, basically, looked out my window, saw the last two seconds of its collapse.

FEYERICK: Jon Gilbert heard the noise, too. He had driven across the bridge minutes earlier, and was walking back intending to catch the Twins game at the nearby Metrodome.

JON GILBERT, I-REPORTER: The wind shifted enough and I could see this little yellow dot and it looked like a school bus and that when I said to everybody around me, I'm like: Oh, my gosh, there's a school bus right over there. And everybody turned and look and that's when I -- I still had my camera phone on and I snapped that picture.

The wind was blowing right at us and it was just an awful smell. It's so hard to describe how thick that smoke was. In the background you hear sirens and you have helicopters that are starting to arrive on the scene, and we couldn't tell if the cries for help are for people that are trapped or if they're people waving the police down or just what it was, but you could defiantly hear sounds of screaming: this way, this way, this way, help, help, help!

FEYERICK: High school reporter and baseball fan, Andrew Worrall was also heading to the game. He got to the bridge about the same time as rescue workers.

ANDREW WORRALL, I-REPORTER: Emergency crews working as hard as they could to get down to the riverbank and get people stuck or underwater.

Like most people that were inside those cars were smart enough not to move at all. A lot of people reportedly had on their emergency brake, and rescue crews went down on tethered ropes on body boards and they got those people out without even really moving the cars.

FEYERICK: And there were others. University of Minnesota student, Heather Hower (ph) live two blocks from the bridge and snapped these photos about 20 minutes after the collapse.

And Carson Sandberg, Steve Dworak (ph), Jay Austin, and Tim Davis, all watching and witnessing a moment they will never forget.

Deborah Feyerick, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ZAHN: And so far we've gotten more than 45,000 i-Reports since we launched our Website just a year ago. And by latest count, you've sent 470 i-Reports just on this bridge disaster.

Federal investigators say these early images are actually helping them piece together exactly what happened and they'd like to see more of them. They're asking all of you, if you took any video, to contact them at 1-866-328-6347. We'll hold that phone number up there for a little bit. We'll also want to see any images you have from this ongoing story or any other breaking news story. Just go to Cnn.com/ireport.

And in a moment, I will be back with a personal word, so stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ZAHN: And welcome back. Right now, I want to share something a little bit personal with you. You may have heard that I am leaving CNN. Yes, it's true. Tonight is my last night here. And it has been a remarkable six years. I have been privileged to witness history from a front row seat and to bring it into your homes. And the breaking news from Minneapolis this week's makes a strange, but perhaps fitting bookend for my time here, because my first day on the air, at this network was September 11, 2001.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

Mayor, what's the situation right now?

MAYOR RUDY GIULIANI, NEW YORK: The situation is that two airplanes have attacked...

ZAHN: We are just getting information from the union official of some of the 400 firefighters that initially went into that area.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh my god.

ZAHN: Two-hundred may have perished.

I know it doesn't get easier each time you come here, but what are your thoughts as we mark this four-month period?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know, Paula, it's just -- it's always different when you're actually here. Even four months later when you actually come to Ground Zero, you can't help but sense the sadness and tremendous sense of loss. ZAHN: Currently, it's believed that some 15 oil wells had been set on fire over the last 24 hours. Are you fairly confident that weapons of mass destruction will ultimately be found in Iraq?

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, SECY OF STATE: I'm very confident that the president, going in, had strong intelligence...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This rescue in progress.

ZAHN: How can it be that hundreds and hundreds of thousands of victims have not received any food and water more than 100 hours after Katrina hit?

MICHAEL BROWN, DIRECTOR, FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY: Paula, I think it's so important for the American public to understand exactly how catastrophic this disaster is.

ZAHN: Sir, you aren't just telling me you just learned that the folks at the Convention Center didn't have food and water until today, are you? You had no idea they were completely cut off?

(CROSSTALK)

BROWN: Paula, the federal government did not even know about the Convention Center people until today.

ZAHN: We are standing about 500 yards away from this candlelight vigil now, where the Taps are being played. I just want to show you the crowd as we continue our conversation.

Thanks you for joining us for a special edition of PAULA ZAHN NOW, "Out in the Open: Racism in America."

We're coming to you from the restored Jefferson Theatre in Beaumont, Texas.

(voice-over): Two years after the 9/11 attacks, a town hall meeting from St. Paul's Chapel in New York City.

(on camera): We come to you from this historic place of worship, a place that, after 9/11, a vital center of refuge for so many.

First, here at the Vatican it has been a spectacular day of ceremony and celebration.

Thank you so much. I'm delighted to be here. Thank you for your hospitality here this evening and welcome to the Racine Theatre Guild for first of four town hall meetings.

Why Canton, Ohio you ask? Well, for a very good reason. With the nation split between President Bush and Senator John Kerry...

It was a great celebration for the president, but a day that brings with it a tremendous number of challenges.

You don't really care who you tick off now, right? I mean, you've been accused of absolving white racism.

For four or five nights a week you did bet on the games. How did you decide which game to bet on?

Who expected you to be perfect?

Here you are, a highly successful performer whose performances have bridged the White world, the Black world, and yet you still are offended on a daily basis.

(voice-over): Former President George Bush walked the sands of nearby Iwo Jima, site of some of the bloodiest fighting of World War II.

(on camera): Now that you've seen this for the first time, what are your impressions?

GEORGE H.W. BUSH, FMR PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, just amazing. I mean, you think of the tragic loss of life.

ZAHN: You knew that the image of you're walking would be unsettling to people. Is there a part of you that derives enjoyment out of needling people and getting them to think a different way?

CHRISTOPHER REEVES, ACTOR: I shouldn't do these interviews. I tell the truth too much. Absolutely.

(LAUGHTER)

ZAHN: How much fun is it?

REEVES: Well, I want to shake people up.

ROSIE O'DONNELL, COMEDIAN: I thought everyone knew, too. You know, when I would say that I was in love with Tom Cruise and people would say well, that was all an act. It's not an act, I never said I wanted to have sex with him, I said I wanted him to come over and mow my lawn in a t-shirt and jeans and bring me lemonade.

ZAHN: But, you also didn't say you had the hots for Angelina Jolie.

O'DONNELL: No, but I think if you watch the show you could tell.

(LAUGHTER)

TOMMY THOMPSON, FORMER HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES SECRETARY: You're the father and you've raised this wonderful child and now she's going to go through this surgery and she's going to lose her breast and it's very traumatic for her.

ZAHN: Well, I personally want to thank you for raising the awareness of the importance of self detection and for opening your heart up to us today.

THOMPSON: I'm was sorry I got teary-eyed, Paula. ZAHN: Oh, you made me get there, too. Any of us who have been through it.

THOMPSON: And I want to thank you because this is so important.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ZAHN: It has been a remarkable journey, six years of non-stop news events. And I am sad to say this is the last time I'm going to be able to chitchat with my buddy Larry King in Los Angeles.

You know, Larry, when I go back and look at that video, you and I have both have lived at warp speed for so long, sometimes you haven't even absorbed what you've witnessed as you sit here from these very privileged seats.

LARRY KING, LARRY KING LIVE: Yeah, that's right. We're too close to the forest for the trees. And watching that retrospective, just now, brings home, Paula, what a privilege it's been to work with you these past six years. You are a terrific journalist, a total pro, class act. I have nothing but the greatest respect for you. I think you have cut your own swath in American media. I'm sorry to see you leaving.

I hope you -- do you know what I hope?

ZAHN: ZAHN: What do you hope?

KING: I hope everything you wish for yourself, comes true. I hope -- I wish you all you wish yourself.

ZAHN: Do you have everything crossed? That's such a nice thing to say. You know, what I'm going to do...

KING: You know what? You don't need luck.

ZAHN: Oh, thank you.

KING: What were you going to say.

ZAHN: We all need grace from upstairs. No, it's -- you know, I leave with such mixed emotions. As you know, what we do is challenging at times, and I could never be sitting here as prepared as I am without KING: this remarkable team that's sitting behind me here tonight. And that is a tough thing to let go of.

You know, you will miss that. You will miss them, and we will miss you. Do you want to know what's coming up? Do you want to know the bit?

ZAHN: Do you have to? No, Larry, I'm just kidding. This is really an important news night, you know, once again, the irony, that I would start and end with this horrendous story out of Minneapolis. Who are you going to be talking to?

KING: A whole ton of people. We'll stay on the story that's been covered all day long, the tragic bridge collapse, of course. More incredible survivor stories, more on heroes who pulled them out, more from structural engineers who will give us some thoughts as to what happened and why.

We'll look at the school bus and the incredible fact that nobody died on that bus. We'll even meat one of the divers who's been searching the river, and a local reporter who saw some unspeakable horrible things in the wreckage. That's at the top of the hour on LARRY KING LIVE. And with that I say for the last time, back to the lovely and talented Paula.

ZAHN: Oh Larry, Thanks so much. Well, I will look forward to continuing to watch you. I have to break a very bad habit, that is, though. I have for years been watching like three and four television sets at one time. So now I will be glued only on you.

KING: You bet, and I'll see you when we're in New York.

ZAHN: And you know who else is here tonight? I've two of my three here tonight and they send you the best.

KING: Give them my love.

ZAHN: Guys, you don't have to hide anymore. Oh, they're hiding. Look, they're behind the computer screen. Nice job! Those are kids for you, Larry. We'll be right back.

KING: What do you know?

ZAHN: You really hid.

KING: Go get them, Paula.

ZAHN: I didn't even know we were still on the air.

KING: Neither did I, but we're here.

ZAHN: OK.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ZAHN: My good night tonight is special, because it's my last one here at CNN. I came here in 2001 determined to report the news honestly, accurately, and without bias. And I have been very lucky to be your window into some of the most important events of the last six years, defining moments in our history -- terror attacks, two wars, a presidential election, Hurricane Katrina, and so many other stories that have affected all of our lives. I hope you have found this program interesting, useful and fair. I hope I served you well.

Again, thank you so much for the privilege of being welcomed into your home. Thank you for trusting me to bring you the news. And I want to express my gratitude to all the people behind the scenes here who helped put this program on the air. Bravo, gang! They're all so shy tonight. They won't even show their heads. They are fabulous colleagues. Thank you so much for joining us tonight and all the other times you've been with us. Have a great night.

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