Can vehicles blow off the bridge during high wind?
No vehicle has ever “blown off” the Mackinac Bridge. Despite the rumors and legends, it’s never happened.
More than 200 million vehicles have crossed the bridge since it opened in November 1957. Only two vehicles have ever gone over the railing of the bridge:
- On Sept. 22, 1989, a Yugo compact car went over the railing. A police report of the incident estimated that the vehicle was traveling at more than 60 mph. While wind could have been a contributing factor, it did not blow the vehicle off the bridge.
- In March 1997, a Ford Bronco went over the railing. That case was later ruled a suicide.
Both incidents were terrible tragedies but were not the result of wind blowing vehicles off the bridge. The hazards of high winds, however, are why we issue advisories and close the bridge during extreme wind events.
