35 who died when Skyway Bridge collapsed to be memorialized

MANATEE -- St. Petersburg-based journalist Bill DeYoung devoted three years to writing his recently published book, "Skyway: The True Story of Tampa Bay's Signature Bridge and The Man Who Brought It Down."

On May 9, 1980, the 600-foot freighter Summit Venture, piloted by Capt. John Lerro, struck the southbound span of the Sunshine Skyway in a violent storm. As he researched that day's events, DeYoung was struck by the fact that there has not been a memorial set up in the area for the 35 who died in

that crash.

"I was shocked and saddened that this dark day was fading into history, and very surprised there was nothing to memorialize these people," DeYoung said. "This is the worst ship-and-bridge disaster in American history,"

That oversight will apparently be rectified with a dedication spearheaded by DeYoung this May 9, the 35th anniversary of the accident.

The Skyway Memorial Project Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that DeYoung started, is planning the dedication of a large granite-and-bronze memorial, which will sit on a grassy stretch of land in the northside rest area between Blackthorn Memorial Park and the old Skyway fishing piers, DeYoung said.

The Skyway Memorial was approved by Florida Gov. Rick Scott when he signed Senate Bill 820 into law on June 25, 2014.

The transportation bill, which included the memorial, was sponsored by Sen. Arthenia Joyner, who represents the 19th District, which includes parts of Manatee, Hillsborough and Pinellas counties.

The Florida Department of Transporation confirmed that the memorial has a green light.

"We are aware of the memorial," said Zachary Burch, a government affairs liaison with the Florida Department of Transportation. "Mr. DeYoung got it approved through the state Legislature as part of a road-designation package. Our permits office is working with him to make sure it's in a safe location and has a safe design and isn't going to affect the bridge."

Although the state did not pursue a marker for the 35 who died, Burch said the state supports DeYoung's action.

"It will be up to him or an organization to come up with the funds for the marker itself," Burch noted.

DeYoung hopes the public will donate the $8,000 needed for the memorial.

"We've raised about $2,000 already so we are a quarter of the way there," DeYoung said.

"The Blackthorn Memorial is amazingly beautiful," he said. "Ours is very simple and straightforward. We are starting to contact family members and hope to get as many as we can locate to come to the dedication." The Blackthorn was a U.S. Coast Guard buoy tender which also sank in 1980, in a collision near the Sunshine Skyway Bridge that claimed the lives of 23 of the crew.

Cycadia Monument Co. is constructing the Skyway memorial, which features a bronze plaque that will include a bas relief of the twin Skyway spans before the 1980 accident, It will also have the names of the 35 victims engraved under the words IN MEMORIAM, along with a brief explanation of the events of May 9, 1980.

Donations can be made at www.gofundme.com/skywaymemorial.

Richard Dymond, Herald reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7072 or contact him via Twitter@RichardDymond.

This story was originally published January 31, 2015 at 12:00 AM with the headline "35 who died when Skyway Bridge collapsed to be memorialized ."