Barges Hit Bridge; 4 Die as Cars Plunge Off Span

A group of barges smashed a 240-foot section out of the only bridge leading to popular South Padre Island early Saturday, and at least four people died after their vehicles plunged into the water 85 feet below.

An unknown number of people were missing. Thirteen were rescued from the Laguna Madre, part of the Intracoastal Waterway shipping route along the Gulf Coast, and three were hospitalized.

Five vehicles were located in the 50-foot-deep water and divers took pictures of the license plates for identification, said Cameron County Sheriff Conrado Cantu. The sheriff said as many as 10 vehicles could be in the water.

Rhonda Fife stood near the four-lane bridge Saturday afternoon. She had not heard from her 18-year-old daughter, Tiffany, since the teenager went to the island with friends late Friday.

Michael Burke, whose two sons made the trip with Tiffany, anxiously waited with Fife.

“I just want to know where my kids are at. I hope they’re all right and just can’t call me,” Burke said.

Recovery efforts were suspended late Saturday afternoon when the third 80-foot section of the bridge collapsed, said Adrian Rivera, a spokesman for the Department of Public Safety. The search will resume this morning.

The Coast Guard was notified around 2:30 a.m. that the tug Brown Water V and its four barges, loaded with coiled steel and phosphate, had hit the 2.37-mile-long span, the longest bridge in Texas. None of the cargo spilled.

The crash dropped two adjacent 80-foot segments of the Queen Isabella Causeway into the channel near the center of the span.

The tugboat captain was questioned and passed a sobriety test, officials said.

Three people died at the scene, and a fourth died at a hospital. One victim was identified as Port Isabel Fire Marshal Robert Harris, said Desi Najera, an emergency management coordinator.

One man was hospitalized in guarded condition, and two of the injured were reported in good condition.

The state hired two boats to serve as ferries, and was considering bringing a state-owned automobile ferry from Corpus Christi, said Randall Dillard of the Texas Department of Transportation.

South Padre Island has 2,000 permanent residents, and island hotels were about 70% booked for the weekend.

In addition, thousands of volunteers had been expected Saturday to help with a beach cleanup.