Woman who drove off Pittsburgh railroad bridge identified
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Authorities in western Pennsylvania have released the name of a woman who died after her sport utility vehicle plunged 70 feet off a railroad bridge in Pittsburgh into the Ohio River.
The Allegheny County medical examiner’s office said 44-year-old Lisa Patterson of the city’s Bloomfield neighborhood drowned after the car went off the Norfolk Southern Bridge just after 2 p.m. Thursday.
River rescue personnel said the vehicle was found in water about 20 feet deep. A dog and cat believed to have been inside the SUV swam away from the vehicle and were rescued.
The bridge is normally used only by freight trains. Public safety spokeswoman Emily Schaffer said police are trying to pinpoint how and where the woman drove onto the tracks. They are looking for surveillance video.