August 22, 2007 - Minnesota and North Dakota transportation officials have closed a bridge over the Red River. The RobbinDrayton bridge carries Minnesota Highway 11 into North Dakota north of Grand Forks. It will be closed for at least a week. The bridge is the first to be closed since the 35W bridge collapse. It was scheduled for replacement in a couple of years. But, MinnDoT inspectors found damage on the span's approach. The inspection was part of the statewide bridge inspection program started after the 35W bridge collapse. To find out how the closure will impact the area around the bridge the Mayor of Drayton, North Dakota, Ardis Olson, is interviewed.
August 10, 2007 - A traditional Muslim memorial service was held for the victims of the 35-W bridge collapse. About 50 people, mostly Somali, attended a prayer service at the gymnasium of the Brian Coyle Community Center in Minneapolis to remember those who died in the accident and are still missing.
August 9, 2007 - Since the 35W bridge collapse last week, there's been a lot of attention on how, and how often, bridges are inspected. As investigators look for the causes of the collapse of the Minneapolis bridge, engineers around the country will continue their inspections, hoping to find evidence that could prevent the next bridge failure. Finn Hubbard is the state bridge engineer for the State of Wisconsin. In his career, he's performed bridge inspections. Earlier, he told us how bridge engineers actually check out the underside of major bridges.
August 6, 2007 - When President George W. Bush toured the collapsed bridge site on Saturday there was a young man at his side for much of the tour. His name is Gary Babineau, a 24-year-old construction worker from Blaine. He was heading north on 35W, driving home from a jobsite in Lakeville Wednesday night when the bridge deck plunged toward the Mississippi River, and took his truck with it. You may have pictures of that truck, it's been shown by many TV cameras, a bright blue Chevy pickup, sitting close to a school bus. When the drop ended, Babineau jumped out of that truck and headed for safety. Then he heard the cries of children in the school bus. That's when he snapped into action, and helped the kids get to safety.
August 6, 2007 - MnDOT says the 35W bridge was totally capable of carrying the some 140,000 a day that used it at the time of its collapse last week. At a briefing today, transportation officials wouldn't speculate on whether the amount of traffic somehow contributed to the failure of the bridge. However, the head of the University of Minnesota engineering department says increased traffic on a bridge experiencing fatigue will shorten its life span. When it collapsed, the 35W bridge was 40 years old, but its life span was predicted to be 50 years. Minnesota Public Radio's Sea Stachura reports.
May 28, 2007 - 24 Minnesota soldiers have been killed around the world since last Memorial Day. Tom Crann gives the names and a brief remembrance of all 24.
April 11, 2007 - The City of Minneapolis is restructuring its revolving loan fund program to accommodate Muslim business owners. The program offers low-interest loans to small business owners whose ventures would help revitalize targeted areas of the city.
April 2, 2007 -
March 20, 2007 - The mayors of Minneapolis and St. Paul are hoping that people all around the country will begin thinking about these Twin Cities as a single destination. Last night, Mayors Rybak and Coleman announced that they are going to work together to re-brand Minneapolis and St. Paul. The hope is, by creating a shared brand, the cities may be able to stop competing against each other to attract businesses and events. The plan is, to use the best of both cities to lure people to the metro area. MPR’s Tom Crann interviews Karyn Gruenberg, vice president of marketing and communications for Meet Minneapolis, formerly known as the Minneapolis Convention and Visitors Bureau. She talked about the launch of the cities' branding campaign with the mayors last night.
March 13, 2007 -