Webbers Falls Hosts Memorial Ceremony To Honor Lives Lost During I-40 Bridge Collapse

People in Webbers Falls are remembering the lives lost when the I-40 bridge collapsed 20 years ago.

"If it had to happen, it's a thing that God had some piece of that it happened here,” said Janette Barlow.

May 26, 2002, is a day the town of Webbers Falls will never forget.

Barlow comes every year there's a service in honor of her niece, Gail Shanahan.

Shanahan was driving across I-40 the day barges crashed into a pier supporting the bridge across the Arkansas River causing it to collapse. She’s one of 14 people who lost their lives.

Barlow said through the loss, the town took her family under their wing.

"But we come back and celebrate and rejoice with these people that we now call family,” Barlow said.

Barlow's family comes a day early to spend time at the monument.

“And we remember a lot of the fun, good times we had, in fact, the very last time we were ever with her. And we laughed about it yesterday and at the same time before we left, there were tears,” Barlow said.

The memorial service was canceled for three years in a row due to flooding, then the pandemic.

Ronald Cox is one of many who is thankful its back. He’s spent most of his life in Webbers Falls and remembers the day clearly.

"Something like that stays in your mind forever,” Cox said.

People who live here said two decades later -- this ceremony still brings healing to the town.

"The community just came together and so did the state, so did all the areas around here. We all came together to work so hard,” Cox said.

Cox said even through pain and sadness, the losses brought people closer.

He said that's what the service is all about.

“It was a bad day, but this kind of heals the wound,” Cox said.

Related Story: Heartbreak And Hope: 20 Years After The I-40 Bridge Collapse

The ceremony will also recognize the re-building effort after the collapse.

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ODOT bridge engineers and construction crews replaced the bridge and restored traffic in just 64 days.

The commemoration will begin at 10 a.m. at Webbers Falls City Park on River Road.

Related Story: Crews Work To Salvage What They Can From I-40 Bridge Collapse