I have been a traffic reporter since 1996. I started here at the beach, eventually made my way to Washington and Baltimore, then moved back here in 2014. Through advanced technology I can still do traffic wherever I am needed. (The mic on my smartphone sounds better than the $7000 ISDN unit we had in 1998). As I try to write this, I have to remind myself, and inform you, dear reader, that I am stunned. I have spent the day with my head in a fog pondering the destruction of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore earlier this morning. I did traffic in DC during 9/11, also during the DC Sniper attacks, and thought I’d seen everything. Until I saw this:
Gobsmacked. That’s what the Brits say. That’s me. But this bridge hadn’t just popped into my head this morning. Let me explain. Our 20 year old son is a music major at a local college. He’s studying to be a church organist. And since this is the week before Easter, tons of churches are having special ceremonies. He asked us yesterday if he could go to Towson, in Baltimore County to attend the Chrism Mass, which is one of the biggest events of the year. At one of the biggest churches on the east coast. With one of the biggest church organs and orchestras. I said yes, but he had to promise to “stay on the Beltway” and not drive through the city. He’s pretty good with Google maps, so he said ok. I felt like this was kind of a reward for him since a month or so ago he received his permanent driver’s license. In Maryland the first 18 months is a probationary license and if you get any violations, it resets the clock. But that didn’t happen, so as a reward, he gets his first solo trip to Baltimore. Our family has the GPS tracking app, Life 360, so I watched him on and off as he drove to the cathedral. He got there on time with 10 minutes to spare.
I’m not saying I had any sort of premonition, but I was troubled last night. I called him and told him to go back the way he came, on the west side of the beltway, to I-97 to get back home. I actually said “I don’t want you going on the Key Bridge”. He seemed to understand but maybe he didn’t. After the mass was over, he called us and said he got gas and he was heading home. That was about 10:30 or so. I went to bed, and saw that he got home around 1:00AM. When I woke up, I learned about the bridge going down. Then out of curiosity, I checked the Life 360 app to see his history. To find out where he really DID drive. Here is a screenshot from the app. Look where he was right before 11:00PM. You will understand why today, I am walking around stunned: