“Thud.” “Thud.” “Bam!”
Several people reported their cars went “thud” as they drove east on the Anna Maria Island Bridge Aug. 28, then one driver’s tire went
“bam” — and the car was disabled.
Perico Island resident Tara Turner told The Islander Sept. 1 that when she drove over the hole, it “shredded” one of her tires.
She was on her way home from work in Anna Maria, when she said she saw something on the bridge shimmer in front of her.
“It was really quick,” she said. “All of a sudden, my car went into a hole and popped out.”
Turner said she immediately pulled over, exited her vehicle and looked down into the hole to see the water beneath.
“You could see all the way through! … It was a little bit terrifying,” she said.
Turner said she called DOT district structures maintenance engineer James Jacobsen about help but missed his return call.
She said she would follow up with Jacobsen on Sept. 3, after The Islander’s press deadline.
Florida Department of Transportation workers — already working on a patch for a hole in the roadway — checked Turner’s tire and towed her VW bug to her residence.
The lane reopened the morning of Aug. 29 after the DOT worked overnight to repair the hole, according to the DOT Southwest District.
A DOT flagging crew arrived first to direct traffic around the lane with the hole and soon after another maintenance crew arrived to complete emergency repairs.
The damaged roadbed was patched that night, ending the traffic disruption before Labor Day weekend visitors arrived in earnest.
This isn’t the first time in recent history the bridge has needed emergency repairs.
Last July, the 16-inch water main across the bridge collapsed into the Anna Maria Sound due to failing hanger mounts on the east end under the bridge.
It was replaced with an elevated temporary pipeline, which closed the bridge’s south sidewalk and has remained since.
The DOT plans to replace the bridge in 2029 with a $138 million 65-foot-high fixed-span bridge with two 12-foot-wide travel lanes.
The AMI Bridge, Cortez Bridge and Longboat Pass Bridge were built in 1957 and have outlived their 50-year life expectancy, according to the DOT.
Jacobsen did not respond to an Aug. 30 call from The Islander.
