Sunshine Skyway Disaster

May 9, 1980 - Today was the day that a 600-foot freighter named the Summit Venture slammed into a pier beneath the Sunshine Skyway Bridge in Tampa Bay, Florida. As a result of the collision, 1,400 feet of the bridge collapsed.

6 cars and a Greyhound bus plunged 150 feet into the water. 35 people were killed, but one man survived the fall when his car hit the deck of the Summit Venture before splashing into the bay.

The man who survived was named Wesley MacIntire. He sued the owners of the ship and settled for $175,000 in 1984.

A replacement bridge was built in 1987.