Looks like it takes about 50 seconds to cross the entire bridge. And the crash happened at 2:49ish in the video. That's enough time to empty the bridge three times in just the time it took to film this video. And the ship hailed mayday and indicated a possible collision before this video. Even if it was just 10 minutes before the start of this video, that's enough time for authorities to block entrance to the bridge on both sides. While the ship is clearly at fault, I have to place additional blame on the port authority for continuing to allow vehicles to cross the bridge.
The person who asked about bridge design, some locations do require piles or other abutments in front of bridge piers, mostly for erosion/ice control, but also boats. A collision with a cargo ship of this size is significantly beyond any possible design requirement for a bridge support. The mass of the bridge and all the cars on it, probably isn't even as much as the mass of the engine, and just the engine - on the ship. The bridge didn't stand a chance.
