Bridge-collapse survivor, friend moves on to happiness

By Tracy Bell

Published: August 7, 2008

Garrett Ebling is a married man.

As simple as that may seem, the fact is quite amazing considering that just over a year ago, his body was fighting to merely stay alive.

Ebling, the former managing editor of the Stafford County Sun, suffered massive injuries when the I-35W bridge in Minnesota collapsed, ultimately killing 13 people and injuring approximately 145 others.

On Aug. 1, many survivors of the collapse celebrated the fact that they are alive, and paid tribute to those who did not make it. The date marked the one-year anniversary of the collapse.

Ebling, first and foremost a friend, was my boss as I worked at the Sun as a reporter covering a variety of county news in Stafford. He was also one of the most enthusiastic players on the company softball team I organized. And, he had a sense of wit about him that always made talking to him fun.

Later, he moved back to his home state of Minnesota.

For me, it was hard to fathom that this catastrophe was happening to someone I knew so well. I saw Garrett on a daily basis for so long, that it is easy to take
for granted that someone will always be there, even if they are “there” having moved away.

On Aug. 1 a year ago, the Red Ford Focus that Garrett used to drive to work every day plummeted into the Mississippi River, and had it not been for a couple of rescuers, he may have drowned.

A lot of things may have happened, really. He may have suffered brain damage as a result of his devastating injuries. But he didn’t. He’s as quick-witted as ever, and a miracle at that.

Garrett’s faith is strong. He has said he felt blessed upon waking up from the state he was in, 19 days later, after being held in a medically induced coma. His injuries were beyond substantial. They were life-threatening — and life-altering.

Garrett suffered multiple injuries including those to his feet, arm, face, jaw and eye. He also suffered a severed colon.

It is likely that Garrett has pondered the fact that we as journalists have spent a great deal of time searching for news, only for him to become part of it.

One has to wonder, each day, how life can change in an instant with the choices we make, or with the paths we take in life where we aren’t even given a choice.

For instance, Garrett wasn’t supposed to be on the I-35W bridge that day. He had taken a wrong turn, on the way home from a company picnic.

But now, Garrett is able to “take back that day” in a sense — the day that almost took his life. He had proposed to his girlfriend, Sonja Birkeland, just four days before the collapse. They spoke on the telephone just minutes before the collapse occurred.

On Aug. 3, Garrett was married in Minnesota, to a woman who has stood by his side through life’s ups and definitely, through life’s downs. In fact, Garrett’s entire engagement period, he noted in a recent Associated Press video interview, has been his recovery period.

Today Garrett, 33, continues to work at Great Clips in Minnesota. His progress can still be tracked at the Web site caringbridge.org — a site originally set up right after the accident, to update friends and family on his medical progress. 

I’m sure I can speak for the rest of us at the Sun and its sister and parent papers when I say that I wish Garrett all the best in a continued recovery and a happy new married life. He deserves it.

Somehow I feel that if anyone can get through this, it is Garrett. After this, I’d bet on him.

Tracy Bell is managing editor of the Stafford County Sun.