DAVENPORT, Iowa — It's been over 21 years since Jamie Lee Reynolds went plummeting 70 feet off the Great River Bridge in Burlington. At the time of the accident Reynolds said, “Next thing I know I’m losing control of my truck. All I remember is being wet and cold. I’ve been thanking God every minute that I’m here.”
Reynolds was lucky to walk away from that accident. On January 6th, 2021 a truck in Milwaukee did the same thing. Richard Oliver was another lucky driver behind the wheel. He flipped 70 feet off an overpass and survived as well.
Both men lost control of their cars, sliding into the walls of the bridges. Instead of just hitting the walls, the piled up snow propelled the men over the edges.
Craig Bargfrede works for the Iowa Department of Transportation. He explained how an incident like that can happen. “That snow does form essentially a ramp. The pavement on that bridge with the temperature can drop much faster much quicker. Those are areas we have to address more often for black ice.”
Here in the Quad Cities Bargfrede says the Iowa DOT tries to prioritize roadways like the new I-74 River Bridge. “During the storm they’re clearing the roadway and doing the best they can to keep the snow away from there.”
Once a storm clears plows do their best to physical remove that snow from the sides of the bridge that has the potential to create those natural ramps. “We have to adjust the plow angle basically as such so that we're basically pushing the snow across that bridge into a more safer area.”
Another advancement that has been made since that Burlington crash is a railing on the I-74 River Bridge to further stop cars from being able to go over the edge. It extends the height, hopefully stopping cars from going over at all.
Bargfrede reminds people as well that personal responsibility is equally as important. “It all comes down to awareness. Slow down, don't drive distracted, increase your following distance and just be aware of your surroundings.”