A Portland man says he’s lucky to be alive after a piece of concrete fell from the Morrison Street viaduct and struck his Tesla while driving home Sunday afternoon. The dramatic moment was caught on his car’s dash camera, showing debris crashing down onto the vehicle just inches from the windshield.
A Sudden, Explosive Impact
Enrique Ruiz was driving home from church with his family when the frightening incident occurred.
“Right when it hit, it just exploded,” Ruiz said. “It felt like a bomb dropping on our car.”
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Ruiz recalled how the family was calmly chatting about their day moments before the impact. “We’re driving home from church and asking the kids about what they’re learning when all of a sudden, ‘Boom,’” he said. “Impact.”
The force of the falling concrete left a large dent in the hood of his Tesla — just a few inches away from the windshield and the front passenger seat where his wife was sitting.
“The good thing is we were on our way back from church, and something was watching over us,” Ruiz said. “A millisecond difference, and this could’ve been a lot worse.”
Discovering the Cause
After the incident, Ruiz returned to the scene to investigate. He found several large chunks of concrete scattered along the freeway beneath the bridge. He collected the pieces and later pieced them together, forming a sizeable fragment consistent with the damage on his car.
“I didn’t think it would help much,” he said, “but sure enough, it looks exactly like what fell on my car.”
Multnomah County officials confirmed that the debris came from the Morrison Street viaduct. The county maintains the roadway and acknowledged that small pieces of concrete had broken loose.
County Response and Safety Concerns
County engineers have since inspected the overpass. Officials stated that the fallen concrete was not structural and does not pose an ongoing threat to drivers. They described the incident as a rare and isolated event, but assured the public that maintenance crews will continue inspecting bridges to identify and remove any loose materials.
Despite those assurances, Ruiz said the experience has left him uneasy about driving under bridges.
“It’s pretty bizarre to think about and process,” he said. “It’s not that fun to go under bridges right now — it’s just a weird feeling I get.”
Public Safety and Infrastructure Questions
The incident has raised broader concerns about the condition of Portland’s aging infrastructure. While Multnomah County insists the viaduct remains safe, Ruiz hopes the city will take stronger preventive measures to ensure no one else experiences a similar scare.
“I want people to know that it might not be safe,” he said. “And I want the city to make sure that it can be safe.”
A Narrow Escape
Ruiz said he feels grateful that his family escaped injury. The concrete struck the car’s hood just inches from the windshield — a difference of moments that could have led to tragedy.
As crews continue their inspections of the Morrison Street viaduct and surrounding bridges, Ruiz is left with a damaged car, shaken nerves, and a powerful reminder of how quickly a routine drive can turn dangerous.
“It all happened in a split second,” he said. “You just don’t expect something like that to fall out of the sky.”
Multnomah County says bridge inspections are ongoing, and any additional loose sections will be removed to ensure public safety.
