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Three injured in Kaufman County bridge collapse

Sep 11, 2008

A semi-trailer hauling heavy road building equipment crossed Cedar Creek on 1836 about 5:30 p.m. Wednesday afternoon. As the cab reached the bridge’s end there was a crack as the two-foot thick concrete broke.

The trailer clung to the bridge’s edge, but a car following behind plunged more than 20 feet into the creek.

The driver was able to get out but the passengers were briefly trapped, said Sgt. Bryan Francis, a Kaufman County Sheriff’s Department spokesman.

One person, in serious condition, was taken by helicopter to East Texas Medical Center in Tyler and the others, in stable condition, went by ambulance to a local hospital, Sgt. Francis said. The truck’s driver appeared uninjured.

Emergency personnel from Kemp, Mabank and Kaufman assisted at the scene, Sgt. Francis said.

The bridge is closed. “Those folks who live in that area, if they want to go to Mabank they’ll have to go a long way around,” Sgt. Francis said.

One lane of the bridge already was closed for construction and the truck carrying the equipment was under contract to the Texas Department of Transportation.


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