Skyway: The True Story of Tampa Bay’s Signature Bridge and the Man Who Brought It Down
“Bill DeYoung’s story of the construction of the original and second span of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge, of the accident in 1980 that destroyed it, and of John Lerro, the harbor pilot steering the Summit Venture that struck the bridge, is spellbinding and reads like a mystery.”—Robert Kerstein, author of Key West on the Edge
“Bill DeYoung’s meticulous reconstruction of how Florida’s mightiest bridge was built and then destroyed is a compelling read, full of telling details a
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Fascinating Story,
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|Wonderfully done…hard to put down once you start.,
I vividly remember so much of that May 9th morning. I was a freshman at Palmetto High School…on the bus ride to school, it was so dark, windy and rainy, we were actually a little afraid riding in. Then, in first period, Spanish class, we heard about it…the Skyway had been hit, the bridge was down and a greyhound bus had gone into the water. I remember our teacher leaving the room because one of the teachers at our school lived in St. Pete and made that drive every morning across the Skyway. He came back and told us she was here…we later found out, she very likely was one of the last cars who successfully crossed.
I remember driving over the single span bridge after the tragedy. It made that drive up to the top even more terrifying. For years, as you made the climb, you could not help but look out your car window to see the empty span next to you…and then as you start to climb higher…seeing nothing but empty blue sky….and then as you were almost back down, the remains of the doomed span would reappear next to you. It is why to this day, I absolutely hate driving over bridges.
So, I have a personal connection as we lived through the tragedy. At the time, we read everything we could find and were glued to the local news night after night. To my surprise, I found that there were many details I was unaware of. This is a well- researched book with tons of historical detail. And normally, I am not a big fan of non-fiction, but I have to say…this is a great read. This was a sad & tragic event and you really feel it as you read this book. A truly worthy testament to the 35 souls lost that day.
Anyone with any interest in maritime stories, Florida history, or true life drama will enjoy this book.
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|Harrowing, heartfelt and touching tale about a little known tragedy and the trauma that remained to the survivors of the Skyway.,
Amazing how much detail was poured into this book, but all the time reading as if it was a good novel, with great character depth and insight. This is what really made Skyway such a compelling read, the attention to the characters and their experiences.
Having rode over the new Skyway many times as a child traveling to visit my grandparents in Sarasota from Ohio every Spring Break, I vaguely remember as a child seeing the old Skyway bridge running parallel, and even now thinking back, recounting the feeling of ‘what if the bridge collapsed?’. I imagine this is something everyone has felt going over a bridge at some point in their life, but the huge expanse of water you traverse over Tampa Bay is something of haunting beauty. Perhaps I was intuitively feeling the loss that had occurred there many years before.
What more can I say, excellent, kudos to you Bill DeYoung!
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