Jim Curtis

Skyway Jim Curtis

On May 9, 1980, 35 innocent people met their tragic end when a ship wiped away a quarter mile of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge over Tampa Bay, Florida. Aided by 45 original eye-witness photos, on-scene journalist Jim Curtis chronicled one of the worst ship-bridge collisions in history, while weaving a true story of how some unsuspecting motorists cheated death while others drove off the bridge and plummeted into Tampa Bay. Photographs from land, sea and air capture the devastation to the Skyway Bridge, the rescue effort, and the final salvage operation after it was discovered only one survived, Wesley MacIntire, also a survivor of D-Day, who proved too tough or too lucky to have perished after he drove off the bridge and fell 150-feet into the bay. The original SKYWAY, published in 1980 and a run away best seller, is included in the newly revised 2nd edition, which includes new photos and a follow up called Aftermath that focuses on the fate of the lone survivor and the ship's pilot, who many consider the the final victim of this human and maritime tragedy. Aftermath also includes personal accounts from the journalists who covered the Skyway Bridge catastrophe and the lasting impact it made.