A 24-year-old man was in critical condition late Friday after falling from the top of the historic Marsh Arch Bridge, aka Rainbow Bridge, near Baxter Springs, Kansas, earlier that day.
KOAM-TV reports the local sheriff said the man suffered traumatic injuries after he fell from the Route 66 bridge to the roadway. The accident occurred about 12:15 p.m. Friday.
He was airlifted to a hospital, then transferred to another hospital in Wichita, Kansas.
The station didn’t have a lot more information on the breaking news story, including why the man was on top of the bridge.
According to specifications of the structure listed at Bridgehunter.com, the top of the arched bridge is 15 feet above the roadway.
The bridge was built in 1923. The span was bypassed by a new bridge in 1992, but the old bridge still is used by one-way traffic and remains a popular stop for Route 66 tourists.
The Marsh Arch Bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.
(Hat tip to Nick Gerlich; image of the Marsh Arch Bridge near Baxter Springs, Kansas, by Jimmy Emerson, DVM, via Flickr)
What a dumbass.
I’m sorry for the poor fellow and wish that the accident hadn’t happened. It was senseless and easily preventable by simply behaving responsibly. Unfortunately, this is the kind of event that can prompt local officials to erect idiot-proof devices all around the bridge, spoiling it photogenically and making it inaccessible to tourists. Please behave responsibly.