We previously reported how, on Monday, January 19, 2015, Anti-Israel activists blocked the San Mateo – Hayward Bridge.
While the protest ostensibly was about the #BlackLivesMatter movement and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, it was hijacked as so many such protests are by the anti-Israel contingent, just like in Ferguson and to a lesser extent in New York City during the Eric Garner protests.
Subsequent to that initial report, we have learned that it was much worse than originally thought. The tactics used were designed to cause maximum traffic disruption and mayhem, including protester cars being abandoned on the roadway, resulting in several car crashes and emergency vehicles being blocked.
The activists used a dangerous tactic of blocking both directions initially, making the scene inaccessible initially to emergency vehicles:
Over 100 Stanford students and community members demonstrating against police brutality temporarily shut down the San Mateo-Hayward Bridge Monday afternoon, snarling the evening commute.The group made their way on eastbound and westbound lanes of state Highway 92 on the bridge at the high-rise around 4:50 p.m., CHP Officer Daniel Hill said.The protesters had been dropped off by cars on westbound lanes and briefly made their way to both sides of the freeway, he said.As of shortly after 5 p.m., eastbound lanes were reopened for motorists heading to Hayward but westbound lanes were still closed off for cars traveling to Foster City, Van Eckhardt said.Drivers were seen turning around at the toll plaza and going the wrong way on the bridge as CHP tried to find tow trucks to take away abandoned cars left on the bridge by protesters. The bridge was reopened shortly before 5:30 p.m.
(Image via Farah Salazar Twitter)
In this video taken by a stalled driver on the other side of the highway, you can see how initially traffic was backed up on both sides creating a dangerous situation high on the span (the initial comments seem to indicate the drivers thought it was an abortion protest until they got closer):
This local news report summarizes the overall traffic disaster, including some drivers going the wrong way on the bridge to escape the jam:
SFgate reports, MLK Day protest on San Mateo Bridge caused crashes, CHP says (h/t EdgeOfTheSandbox Twitter):
A Martin Luther King Jr. Day protest that blocked traffic on the San Mateo Bridge during the evening commute also caused several crashes, authorities said Wednesday.Protesters describing themselves as Stanford University students and carrying banners and a Palestinian flag were dropped off in the middle of the 7-mile span just before 5 p.m. Monday and shut down westbound traffic for more than an hour. The action was held in conjunction with several other Bay Area protests during the holiday honoring King.The demonstration had a reverberating effect on the commute, causing several fender-benders and snarling traffic for hours even after lanes were cleared.“One officer reported handling at least four collisions that resulted in minor injuries or property damages,” said Officer Daniel Hill of the California Highway Patrol.Officers responded to small crashes on both sides of the bridge, but it was unclear how many vehicles were banged up.One driver ditched a Honda Accord on the span after it was sandwiched between cars in westbound lanes during the protest, the CHP said.The vehicle had “major front- and rear-end damage and the person ultimately abandoned it,” Hill said.
There were at least four crashes according to local television, and emergency vehicles had trouble getting through.
(Source: KRON4 Video)
It’s nothing short of a miracle that there were no serious injuries and that no ambulances had to be redirected, as happened in Boston, or worse, were stuck in the traffic jam.
Sixty-Eight people were arrested, mostly Stanford University students, who somehow view themselves as the victims in this incident.
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