Four Bridge Victims Identified

Aug. 3, 2007 — -- Officials announced this morning that a fifth body had been recovered from the Mississippi River and that rescuers would continue to fight the river's currents to locate more victims.

At least 20 cars are still submerged after Wednesday's Interstate 35W bridge collapse in Minneapolis and that could mean more deaths reported in the coming days.

Officials haven't released the name of the latest victim, but additional information is emerging about the four known victims.

Artemio Trinidad-Mena, 29, worked just blocks from his house, but was on the bridge taking a detour on his way home to run an errand.

The Mexico native had a 2-month-old baby girl with his wife, Abundia Martinez. The couple had three other children who lived in Mexico with family.

A friend remembered Trinidad-Mena as a man with an outsized personality and a cheery, positive outlook on life.

Patrick Holmes, 36, married his high school sweetheart and was a doting father to his 6-year-old son and 4-year-old daughter.

Holmes was a star baseball pitcher at Winona State University in the early 1990s and his love of sports continued to be a big part of his life. He took pride in coaching his 6-year-old son's baseball and soccer teams.

Holmes was returning home from his job as an exercise therapist when the bridge collapsed.

Julia Blackhawk, 32, of Savage, had two boys ages 8 and 9. As busy as she was as a mother, she also studied at the Aveda Institute, where she met her friend Liz Ewing.

"She was a sweet girl and everybody loved her," Ewing said.

Praying for the Best

Sherry Lou Engebretsen, 60, was driving home from her job as a marketing director in downtown Minneapolis. She talked to her husband briefly on the phone and told him she had a bad day.

Her husband, Ronald Engebretsen, said Sherry usually avoided driving across the bridge to avoid the frequent construction delays on I-35W.

Thursday afternoon, Sherry's daughter and husband hoped and prayed rescuers would find her.

"She's a fighter. My wife is a fighter and she will do everything she can to work her way out of a situation," Engebretsen said Thursday. "She's a great person, a loving wife, and I love her so much. I know if she could communicate in any way, she would."

Hours later, her family learned the worst. Sherry was dead.

"This is the hardest thing ever," said her 18-year-old daughter, Jessica Engebretsen. "It's really hard."

Hero on the Bus

Among the tragic stories are remarkable tales of survival, including the 60 children who were on the bridge in a school bus, returning home from a trip to a nearby water park.

Camp counselor Jeremy Hernandez, 21, was on the bus when the bridge collapsed.

As the frightened children began crying, Hernandez jumped into action.

"My heart started beating fast and I just jumped over the seats and I opened the back of the door and I kicked the coolers out and then I turned around and tried to throw the kids off the bus," Hernandez said.

Hernandez helped saved the children, one bright spot in a river of tragedy.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.