Tugboat collision On May 28, 1993, the tugboat Chris was pushing an empty
barge through the canal toward the
Mississippi River locks. As was common at the time, the tugboat captain would have to wait to enter the locks, and he was directed to the side of the canal to ground his barge to keep the waterway clear. However, at 3:30 p.m., the barge collided with a support pier of the bridge, causing a section of the bridge to collapse onto the western canal bank and onto the barge. Two automobiles plummeted off of the bridge, killing one person and severely injuring two others. The waterway was closed to navigation for two days, and the bridge was closed for two months while the collapsed span was rebuilt. The concrete debris from the collapsed span was used to protect the new support pier from future collisions.
Hurricane Katrina In 2005,
Hurricane Katrina severely affected the areas on both sides of the bridge (see
Effect of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans), with the most extreme devastation on the Lower 9th Ward side. The bridge was out of service for months, left in the up position to accommodate Canal shipping, until it was restored to service in early 2006.
Crossing gates malfunction On May 20, 2008, 17-year veteran New Orleans Police Officer Tommie Felix was killed when his vehicle drove off the bridge and plunged into the canal while the bridge was in the raised position. Eyewitness accounts said that the gates which come down to indicate the bridge's closure were not functioning at the time, and several other cars came close to driving off the bridge but stopped short. ==References==