The news is blasting across Twitter right now:
BREAKING: The I-5 Bridge over the Skagit River has collapsed. Cars are in the water. Avoid the area. More soon.
— KOMO News (@komonews) May 24, 2013
Looks like both the northbound and the southbound lanes are out. The best person to follow for up-to-the-minute updates on Twitter at the moment is is Lynsi Burton, a reporter for the Skagit Valley Herald. KOMO radio is taking calls from witnesses. You can listen in on their website. One witness says a 50-foot portion of the bridge is gone and rescuers are on the scene. More updates as they come.
UPDATE 7:32 PM: Here's a picture from the scene:
Via @gina_svh - the I-5 bridge over Skagit River between Burlington & Mt. Vernon WA. Cars and people in the water. twitter.com/Gina_SVH/statu…
— Bobby (@BobbyRobertsPDX) May 24, 2013
UPDATE 7:34 PM: Based on witness reports and the above photo, it sounds like they're talking about this bridge, which was built in 1955 and which Bridgehunter.com says got a satisfactory rating back in 2010:
Inspection (as of 08/2010)
Deck condition rating: Satisfactory (6 out of 9)
Superstructure condition rating: Fair (5 out of 9)
Substructure condition rating: Satisfactory (6 out of 9)
Appraisal: Functionally obsolete
Sufficiency rating: 57.4 (out of 100)Average daily traffic (as of 2010)
70,925
UPDATE 7:40 PM: KING 5 has another photograph of the scene. At least two cars are in the water, and all north-south traffic is stopped.
UPDATE 7:48 PM: Holy shit, these pictures are incredible:
Pic of#Skagitbridgecollapse taken by friend of @annakxly4 NB lanes collapsed into river. Several cars submerged twitter.com/kxly4news/stat…
— kxly(@kxly4news) May 24, 2013
UPDATE 7:58 PM: I'm depositing more on-the-scene tweets after the jump, so this post will load in a timely fashion.
UPDATE 8:01 PM: KING 5 is streaming live from the scene right now.
UPDATE 8:22 PM: Marcus Deyerin on Twitter is saying that two people are being extracted from a truck that's in the water at the moment. Authorities are asking people to stop coming to the scene, as they're getting in the way. Also, they're asking residents of Skagit to stay off the phone if they can, as lines are getting tied up.
UPDATE 8:28 PM: Rescuers in boats are at the scene. I've put another photo after the jump.
UPDATE 8:30 PM: On Twitter, Skagit Valley Herald reporter Gina Cole says: "Stretcher with second person pulled from river. Unsure if person is alive, but no applause from onlookers this time when they reached land." KOMO says one person has been pulled from a car and two have been rescued from a truck. Here's a KOMO live feed.
UPDATE 8:35 PM: I've heard from multiple eyewitnesses on different news livestreams that the collapse appeared to happen because a wide load truck struck a beam on the bridge. We're a long way from discovering the reason for all this, though.
UPDATE 8:58 PM: The Seattle P.I. says the bridge was declared "safe and sound" by Washington's Department of Transportation in 2008.
UPDATE 9:05 PM: Brian Rosenthal at the Seattle Times writes:
Rescuers think they have pulled everybody out of the water, but they’re not sure, [Marcus] Deyerin [of the Northwest Washington Incident Management Team] said.
Anybody still in the water will probably not be rescued, officials said.
UPDATE 9:08 PM: And then there's this update, from the Everett Herald:
Everyone accounted for, no fatalities in #Skagit County bridge collapse, according to reporter on scene.
— The Herald (@EverettHerald) May 24, 2013
Governor Inslee and Transportation Secretary Lynn Peterson are about to get in a plane and fly to the scene.
UPDATE 9:17 PM: And with the news that there were no fatalities, that's the end of this live-Slog. Any new developments will appear as new posts on Slog tonight.
PICTURES FROM 7:58 PM:
I-5 Bridge over #Skagit river. twitter.com/oneactlife/sta…
— Dustin Moore (@oneactlife) May 24, 2013
NEW PHOTO: #BREAKING I-5 bridge collapse in Skagit Valley — there are cars and people in the water. twitter.com/NWCN/status/33…
— NorthWest Cable News (@NWCN) May 24, 2013
NEW PHOTO: #BREAKING I-5 bridge collapse in Skagit Valley — there are cars and people in the water. twitter.com/NWCN/status/33…
— NorthWest Cable News (@NWCN) May 24, 2013
PICTURE FROM 8:28 PM:
KOMO-TV: Emergency responder boats in the water attempting to rescue people in Skagit river twitter.com/passantino/sta… (@passantino)
— BuzzFeed News (@BuzzFeedNews) May 24, 2013
http://gaugetrade.livejournal.com/114240
Ten-year-old Maggie Hollifield was shot and killed by a 14-year-old boy outside her Virginia home, a horrific accident that should not be confused with 10-year-old Elvira Campos who was shot dead in her Sacramento County living while watching TV, or 14-year-old Daja Robinson who was shot and killed on a bus in Queens. Can't tell the players without a scorecard.
FYI, my recent gun rant here.
http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archive
Yesterday, Dan showed you the awkward footage that ensued when CNN news-idiot Wolf Blitzer accidentally asked an atheist if she thanked the Lord for delivering her from the tornado.
Today, Christian Nightmares notices that Glenn Beck thinks the whole scenario smacks of a conspiracy. He begins, "I really like Wolf Blitzer, and I think he's a good man," but "that questioning was peculiar, even for Wolf, who I think is a religious man." Beck concludes that Blitzer was set up by a producer who is "sympathetic to the atheist plight" or "just doesn't like Christians." That producer knew the woman was an atheist but hid the information and told Blitzer to ask the question about God in order to raise awareness of atheism. "That was there for a reason," Beck says, knowingly.
Attorney General Eric Holder signed off on a controversial search warrant that identified Fox News reporter James Rosen as a “possible co-conspirator” in violations of the Espionage Act and authorized seizure of his private emails, a law enforcement official told NBC News on Thursday.
The disclosure of the attorney general’s role came as President Barack Obama, in a major speech on his counterterrorism policy, said Holder had agreed to review Justice Department guidelines governing investigations that involve journalists.
"I am troubled by the possibility that leak investigations may chill the investigative journalism that holds government accountable," Obama said. "Journalists should not be at legal risk for doing their jobs."
Yeah, well, that horse is already out of the barn, isn't it, President Obama? Ryan Lizza succinctly explains why this news matters:
How can Holder conduct a fair review of DOJ media policies when he personally approved warrant calling reporter a criminal and flight risk?
— Ryan Lizza (@RyanLizza) May 23, 2013
A New Jersey Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control investigation has found that 29 bars and restaurants, including 13 TGI Fridays, allegedly substituted cheap booze (or worse!) while charging for premium drinks:
At one bar, a mixture that included rubbing alcohol and caramel coloring was sold as scotch. In another, premium liquor bottles were refilled with water — and apparently not even clean water at that.
In January and February, investigators went to 63 establishments they suspected were scamming liquor customers. They ordered drinks neat — that is, without ice or mixers — and then covertly took samples for testing.
Of 150 samples collected, 30 were not the brand as which they were being sold.
Why can't government regulators leave the market to sort this out for itself? Nanny-statism at its worst!
http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archive
The organization's 1,400-member national council voted for the policy change, which will take effect January 1.
"No youth may be denied membership in the Boy Scouts of America on the basis of sexual orientation or preference alone," says the approved resolution.
The BSA will maintain its ban on gay adult leaders.
Hooray for not excluding gay kids, but boo for the ban on gay leaders, which probably exists to mollify a few idiot bigots who still believe that all gay men are pedophiles. And, as Dan pointed out, atheists are still not invited to the club, so the Boy Scouts have a long way to go yet.
After seven years, the annual Guest Chef at the Waterfront was set to move inland to Showbox Sodo. The new FareStart Guest Chef Spectacular—tonight!—was to include the profligate eatings and drinkings of more than 20 restaurants and 20 wineries/breweries, all to benefit FareStart.
Now there's a big crack in a structural beam at Showbox Sodo, and the building has been evacuated (everybody's safe), and the Guest Chef Spectacular cannot spectaculate tonight.
Ticketholders will receive refunds; full press release after the jump.
Make a straight-up donation to FareStart over here!
And, well, here's some other food-related stuff to do.
FareStart's Guest Chef Spectacular Event Has Been Cancelled
During set-up for FareStart’s Guest Chef Spectacular event at Showbox SoDo, a structural beam in the ceiling cracked. The building was evacuated safely and there were no injuries. Under the counsel of a structural engineer, the venue has been closed for the evening and FareStart has cancelled the event. We will be issuing full refunds to all ticket holders and we apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. We are happy to report that all food from the evening will be utilized for our shelter meal program and will be delivered to area homeless shelters and will not go to waste. We thank everyone for their understanding and support.
The Guest Chef Spectacular was to be a celebration of the talented chefs and restaurants that support FareStart’s training programs throughout the year and was slated to feature tastes from more than 40 of the area’s top restaurants, wineries, breweries and distilleries. There are no details yet as to whether the event will be rescheduled. Again, full refunds will be issued to all ticket holders.
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Page Summary
strangerslog : An I-5 Bridge Over the Skagit River Has Collapsed [+0] 
gaugetrade :: looking4strange : (no subject) [+0] - wtf_inc :: fuzzycuteness : You'd be happy too if you had good food. [+2]
- strangerslog : 10-Year-Old Girl Accidentally Shot Dead by 14-Year-Old Boy [+0]
- strangerslog : Glenn Beckwatch: CNN's Atheist Plot, Revealed! [+0]
- strangerslog : Spotted on a Window [+0]
- strangerslog : Holder Signed Off on Warrant to Seize Fox News Reporter's Personal E-Mails [+0]
- strangerslog : Yet Another Example of Oppressive Government Regulations Destroying Free Enterprise [+0]
- strangerslog : Boy Scouts Lift Ban on Gay Members [+0]
- strangerslog : Showbox Sodo Cracked, FareStart Guest Chef Spectacular Tonight Cancelled [+0]
