BRIDGE RESCUE: I-10 in California closed following bridge collapse

The Tex Wash bridge along eastbound I-10 collapsed, closing down I-10, the main roadway between Southern California and Phoenix.

A black truck was driving east on I-10 when the bridge collapsed beneath it. The passenger was able to get out but firefighters had to rescue to the driver approximately two hours after the collapse.

As it collapsed, the Tex Wash bridge struck the adjacent westbound side bridge. Both lanes of I-10 will be closed until an engineer from the California Department of Transportation deems the westbound lane safe for drivers.

The Tex Wash bridge was listed as functionally obsolete in the 2014 National Bridge inventory but its westbound bridge also built in 1967 was categorized as “not deficient”.

All I-10 traffic was closed near Eagle Mountain Road. Eastbound traffic was closed at Chiriaco Summit and westbound traffic was closed at Corn Springs.