Pilot in Florida bridge collapse dies
Posted: Tuesday, September 3rd, 2002 3:46 pm
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - John E. Lerro, the harbor pilot who crashed a freighter into the Sunshine Skyway bridge more than two decades ago, collapsing part of the span and killing 35 people, has died after a long battle with multiple sclerosis. He was 59.
Lerro slipped into a coma last week and died Saturday, said his wife, Laila Lerro.
“He finally quit being haunted by what happened,” she said. “He finally could stop thinking about it all.”
On May 9, 1980, Lerro was piloting the 608-foot Summit Venture into the Port of Tampa when a sudden squall knocked out the ship’s radar and reduced visibility nearly to zero. …
The Summit Venture plowed into a pier, shearing a bridge support during morning rush hour. A section of concrete roadway plummeted 150 feet into the water along with a bus carrying 26 people and several cars.
Lerro was threatened and was called an alcoholic. … Read full obituary
