MINNEAPOLIS, MN (August 2, 2007) - Photojournalist Andrew Worrall was on the scene shortly after the I-35W bridge over the Mississippi River collapsed during rush hour on Wednesday evening in Minneapolis, MN, and along with other photojournalists he captured compelling scenes as rescue workers climbed through the debris and twisted metal to search for survivors.
And a day after the disaster, Worrall continues to document the scene while CNN, Good Morning America, American Morning, CBS, and Newsweek display his images and ask him for interviews.
What makes Worrall different from all the other photojournalists who were there after the bridge collapse, or who are still on the scene with him documenting the aftermath? Worrall is 19 years old and just graduated from Roseville Area High School and is an incoming freshman at the University of Missouri at Columbia's media convergence program. The teen has been an NPPA member since April.
But college is still a few weeks down the road. Today, he's photographing the scene where police say five people are confirmed dead, as many as 80 are injured, but 30 more are missing and as many as 50 cars remain in the river and it may take another week to pull them out and search for bodies.
"I was headed out to the Twins game. It was going to be a great experience; I had previously won these 10th-row seats at an earlier game and was looking forward to attending with my parents and one of my sisters," Worrall told News Photographer magazine today. "On the way, the Twins pre-game show was interrupted to present the story about the bridge that had collapsed; the same bridge was our access point to the Metrodome in downtown Minneapolis. I asked that we get as close as possible."
Worrall had with him a camera that he planned to use to shoot with at the game, and an old high school press credential. "I grabbed those as we approached the site and ran as fast as I could with my gear toward the crowd. I started snapping, and tried to capture everything I saw. Access was limited, even for the media."
The young photographer had a sobering thought as he took pictures. "I realized what a great decision I had made not to go to the game early for batting practice; otherwise, that might have been me underwater."
He did eventually make it to the game, and he noticed that the photographers' wells at the ballpark were completely empty. "When I got back home, I submitted photos to CNN's I-Report. I received calls from Atlanta and New York requesting live interviews on the phone and in person downtown - at 3 a.m. Of course I jumped on that opportunity. Downtown, CBS saw my images and requested copies. I had an email from Newsweek requesting exclusive rights for printed publications. They also asked me to shoot more of the aftermath on Thursday."
Worrall may only be an incoming college freshman, but in high school his camera was such a big part of his life that he was known as "that kid with the camera."
"I held almost every position on my high school paper, including editor in chief as a junior. I joined freshman year. My photos and stories were often published and photos were also in the yearbooks. Technically I haven't actually studied photojournalism or journalism in general, except for summer workshops by the National Scholastic Press Association and Three Sixty (at the University of St. Thomas, formerly the Urban journalism workshop)."
A full day after the bridge first fell, Worrall was asked what he thinks about Wednesday's experience in retrospect. "It really pushes my ethics; it's definitely hard to shoot people suffering and tragedy in general. But I'm happy if I can make the world a better place by sharing my vision through my lens."
NPPA vice president John B. Zibluk teaches photojournalism at Arkansas State University and each year has freshman students who are similar to Worrall. "Success in photojournalism depends on intiative and independence," Zibluk said today. "Certainly, you need a good eye, a good heart, a good head and good skills. But that doesn't get you anywhere if nobody gets to see your work. Worrall shows the difference between being a pro and a wannabe. He's a true professional by going out and being a photojournalist rather than just thinking about it. He's really a great example for high school and college students everywhere."
