Workers search for bodies in bridge debris

Bush to go to Minneapolis
President Bush, who will travel to the scene of the disaster Saturday, said the federal government would help rebuild the bridge in the city that will host next year's Republican National Convention.

"We in the federal government must respond, and respond robustly, to help the people there not only recover, but to make sure that lifeline of activity — that bridge — gets rebuilt as quickly as possible," Bush said. He also offered his condolences to the victims.

Still stung by harsh criticism of the government's sluggish response to Hurricane Katrina, Bush talked with state and local officials in Minnesota, and the administration dispatched officials to the scene.

First lady Laura Bush will visit Minneapolis on Friday to console victims of the disaster.

The U.S. House Transportation Committee quickly approved legislation Thursday that would direct $250 million to Minnesota to help it replace the bridge. But in the Senate, Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, said it was too soon to approve emergency funding for a new bridge because it is unclear how much will be needed.

Investigations ordered
Gov. Tim Pawlenty on Thursday ordered an immediate inspection of all bridges in the state with similar designs, but said the state was never warned that the bridge needed to be closed or immediately repaired.

Federal officials alerted states Thursday to immediately inspect all bridges similar to the Minneapolis bridge.

After a study raised concern about cracks, Minnesota was given two alternatives: Add steel plates to reinforce critical parts or conduct a thorough inspection of certain areas to see if there were additional cracks. They chose the inspection route, beginning that examination in May.

Dorgan said officials considered the cracks on parts of the bridge to be stable and not expanding.

When conducting inspections, Dorgan said, inspectors get within an arm's length of various components of a bridge. If they spot cracks, that leads to more hands-on testing to determine the depth and extent of the fissures.

The collapsed bridge's last full inspection was completed June 15, 2006. The report shows previous inspectors' notations of fatigue cracks in the spans approaching the river, including one 4 feet long that was reinforced with bolted plates. A 1993 entry noted 3,000 feet of cracks in the surface of the bridge; they were later sealed.

No sense of urgency
That inspection and one a year earlier raised no immediate concerns about the bridge, which wasn't a candidate for replacement until 2020.

In a 2001 report from the University of Minnesota's Department of Civil Engineering, inspectors found some girders had become distorted. Engineers also saw evidence of fatigue on trusses and said the bridge might collapse if part of the truss gave way under the eight-lane freeway.

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At the scene on Thursday, in the river, divers took down license plate numbers for authorities to track down the vehicles’ owners. Getting the vehicles out was expected to take several days and involve moving around very large, heavy pieces of bridge.

Relatives who couldn’t find their loved ones at hospitals gathered in a hotel ballroom Thursday for any news, hoping for the best.

Ronald Engebretsen, 57, spent the day searching for his wife, Sherry. His daughter last heard from her when she left work in downtown Minneapolis Wednesday. Afterward, her cell phone picked up only with voice mail. She was among those identified as dead Thursday evening.

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