35W Bridge Collapse Victims May Be Limited in Aid

Shannon Weidemann

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The 35W Bridge collapsed in Minneapolis last August and left 150 victims. 13 of those people died. Many families were left with large medical bills and the loss of income from the victims. State legislators have been busy working on a victims' compensation fund. The proposed plan my fall far short of what victims need though.

The Senate bill would limit payments to $400,000 per victim, which could leave the most severely injured with much less than they've lost. That's the state's liability limit for individuals as of Jan. 1, and Latz's bill would make it retroactive to Aug. 1, the day the bridge fell.

It wouldn't be fair to give bridge collapse victims more than other victims could get, said Latz, DFL-St. Louis Park. Bridge victims, too, might stand to recover money from private companies involved in maintaining and inspecting the structure, he added.

The House and Senate bills may need to be worked out in a committee to make them similar. The House bill calls for a $30 to $60 million fund that would not cap individuals at $400,000. The governor of Minnesota is for now backing the Senate plan.