A couple of hours ago the N.Y. Times reported that “a highway bridge in the heart of Genoa, Italy, collapsed on Tuesday, killing at least 20 people as it dropped dozens of vehicles, and tons of concrete and steel, onto buildings, streets, vehicles and railroad tracks below.” The collapse reportedly happened during a violent rainstorm.
I’ve driven across it several times over the last couple of decades. It’s right in the heart of the city; tens of thousands cross it every day. What a horribly violent way to die, sailing into space inside your car, screaming as you plunge toward the ground or into the gray river, sheared and crunched metal, blood and cracked bones…I don’t want to think about it. But I could’ve been one of the “dozens.”
