Disasters: Collapse of the Silver Bridge

To those who suffer from gephyrophobia — fear of bridges — the alumi num-painted, 2,235-ft. span between Kanauga, Ohio, and Point Pleasant, W.

Va., was a constant horror. Christened in 1928 as the "Gateway to the South," it swayed sickeningly to every vagrant breeze — so much so that Point Pleas ant Mayor D. B. Morgan banned its use during parades. Last week, under the bumper-to-bumper weight of cars, gravel trucks, and semitrailers, the "Silver Bridge" collapsed, carrying perhaps as many as 100 people to their deaths in the murky, near-freezing Ohio...