At 11:45 AM on Thursday, May 18, 1995, an Illinois Central freight train heading south out of Memphis was crossing the bridge over the Coldwater River at Savage, Miss., about 40 miles south of Memphis, when the bridge began to wobble. The bridge collapsed and 14 cars were dumped into the river. About a mile away, seven more cars and two of the four engines pulling the two mile long train derailed from the jolt.

On Saturday morning, the wreckage had all been cleared. Pilings trucked from the nearby Koppers plant at Grenada,Ms., were being unloaded as the work train and pile driver worked in the back ground.

The "Hook" was busy removing the debris of the former bridge.

On the other side of the river, new pilings were being driven into the ground and tractors were recontouring the river bank. As all this work was being done, new bridge spans were being fabricated from the railroads blueprints and would be on site and ready to install when the new pilings and piers were in place.

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