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Tasman Bridge disaster in pictures: 50 years since 1975 tragedy

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Cars teeter off the edge of the collapsed Tasman Bridge in 1975. Image / National Archive of Australia

Fifty years have passed since the MV Lake Illawarra collided with Hobart’s Tasman Bridge on January 5, 1975, killing 12 people.

The disaster claimed the lives of seven crew members on board the vessel and five occupants of four cars that plunged 45 metres into the river after driving off the bridge.

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Tonight, the bridge will close for three minutes around the time of the disaster from 9:27pm to 9:30pm to make the somber occasion.

See the photos:

Headlines shine from two vehicles stuck on the bridge. Image / Tasmanian Archives
Two cars that nearly plummeted into the Derwent River. Image / Michael Larder
Cars teeter off the edge of the collapsed Tasman Bridge in 1975. Image / Tasmania Police
The impact caused sections of the bridge to collapse. Image / Tasmanian Archives
People queue to catch a ferry from the Hobart waterfront to the eastern shore. Image / Tasmanian Archives
The collision caused extensive damage to the Tasman Bridge. Image / Tasmanian Archives
Repairs were undertaken in the years following the collapse. Image / Tasmanian Archives
Repairs were undertaken in the years following the collapse. Image / Tasmanian Archives
Cars teeter off the edge of the collapsed Tasman Bridge in 1975. Image / Tasmania Police
Five occupants of four cars which fell 45 metres off the bridge died. Image / Tasmanian Archives
Repairs were undertaken in the years following the collapse. Image / Tasmanian Archives
The collapse cut off Hobart from the eastern shore. Image / Tasmania Police
One of the cars which fell into the Derwent is recovered. Image / Tasmanian Archives
Five occupants of four cars which fell 45 metres off the bridge died. Image / National Archive of Australia
The Hobart pontoon bridge still in operation as construction of the Tasman Bridge nears completion in 1964. Image / Archives Office of Tasmania
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