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California overpass collapses after tanker crash | 04.30.2007 | 05:03:44 | Views: 7007 | ID: April 30 '07: A 17-foot stretch of a major overpass on the Bay Area freeway collapsed this weekend after a gas tanker crashed, causing intense heat and flames reaching almost 200 feet, the LA Times reported. The collapses of the overpass caused heavy traffic on Monday morning as commuters headed to work and it prompted a declaration of emergency from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. According to the LA Times, "The accident forced the closure of two damaged sections of the heavily traveled maze east of the Bay Bridge, which carries 270,000 vehicles to and from San Francisco each day. Repairs are expected to disrupt traffic for weeks and, some say, months." According to officials, the collapse of the bridge "once again demonstrated the vulnerability of California's crowded freeway systems to serious disruption, whether from accidents or natural disasters such as the 1994 Northridge earthquake and the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake," the LA Times continued. To help compensate the overpass's closing while under repair, public transportation officials said they would work to increase their capacity by 50 percent, the San Jose Mercury News reported. The driver of the truck, James Mosqueda, survived the crash with second-degree burns and will be hospitalized for several days, the LA Times reported.
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