TAMPA, Fla. — Thursday marks 44 years since the Sunshine Skyway Bridge tragedy.
On May 9, 1980, a freighter struck a support column of the old bridge during the morning rush hour. Six cars, a truck and a Greyhound bus plunged into the water, killing 35 people.
The visibility was low and it was raining as a harbor pilot guided the ship after a storm knocked out the radar. The 19,734-ton Summit Venture crashed into the bridge just after 7:30 a.m.
Twenty-six of the people killed were on the Greyhound bus. The youngest victim was a baby, and the oldest was 92. There was one person who survived the fall after his truck bounced off the freighter's bow and the crew rescued him.
After the collapse, crews tore down most of what remained, leaving behind the ends that are now fishing piers.
The new "Bob Graham Sunshine Skyway Bridge" was rebuilt seven years later and features new safety bumpers called "dolphin" structures in the water to help prevent ships from coming into contact and, potentially, another collapse. The bridge's height was also raised to let ships pass underneath more easily.
The bridge is now regarded as one of the most protected in the country with features that other bridges use as safeguards. It was named after Former Gov. Bob Graham who pushed for a completely new bridge.
Tampa Bay residents were reminded of the fatal incident when a freighter ship crashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore in March and killed six people. The body of a fifth missing construction worker recently was recovered as salvage teams work to recover the body of a sixth worker.