Elizabethton, TN Bridge Collapses, Apr 1956

BRIDGE COLLAPSE KILLS WORKER.

Elizabethton, TN. -- HARRY BROOKS, co-owner of Brooks Construction Company, was listed in good condition this morning from injuries suffered when a new highway bridge collapsed near Elizabethton Tuesday, killing one and injuring two others.
Co-workers said FRED DUGGER, Johnson County farmer and carpenter, was buried under an estimated 70 tons of concrete and structural steel. His body was recovered later.
Also injured were LEONARD HIGGINS of Unicoi County, and FRANK WARD of Johnson County. Both were listed in good condition at Franklin Clinic in Elizabethton this morning.
WARD was treated for chest injuries, a broken leg and cuts and abrasions. BROOKS was treated for possible head injuries and cuts of the face. HIGGINS was treated for cuts and bruises.
The bridge was scheduled for completion next week. The portion which collapsed was the last 53-foot section of a 240-foot structure which had been under construction for almost a year. The bridge is located on State Highway 603 near the Tennessee-North Carolina line.
HERBERT PRICE of Rogersville, working under the bridge with DUGGER, and 18 other employees of Brooks Construction Company, leaped to safety as the bridge started to fall.
DUGGER was a member of the Johnson County Board of Education. Funeral arrangements have not been announced.

Kingsport Times Tennessee 1956-04-25
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Researched and Transcribed by Stu Beitler. Thank you, Stu!