VIDEO: Car-Sized Ice Chunks Falling From Mackinac Bridge

Crossing Michigan's Mackinac Bridge any time of the year can be nerve-wracking, especially if you're driving in the grated lane (if you know, you know). However, making the journey across the Mighty Mac during the winter or early spring presents a unique danger beyond white-out and/or windy conditions that shut down the crossing from time to time—huge, heavy chunks of ice that are the size of a truck falling from its towers.

If you're unfamiliar with this iconic structure, it's five miles long, nearly 69 feet wide, and has towers 552 feet above sea level and 200 feet from the deck, according to MightyMac.org. If we were doing 'story problems' about heavy ice blocks falling from up to 200 feet, meeting a car traveling at 45 mph would not end well for the driver or their passengers.

Mackinac Bridge Authority via MighyMac.org on Facebook / Canva

Video provided by the Mackinac Bridge Authority shows the hair-raising moment the decision was made to close the bridge on April 1, 2025, trapping many in the Upper or Lower Peninsulas of Michigan.

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As you'll see in the video below and the still shots above and below, two cars were just seconds away from having a very different day.

Mackinac Bridge Authority via MighyMac.org on Facebook / Canva

One of the falling chunks appears to be large enough to straddle half the bridge deck, meaning it could be up to 35 feet in length.

Based on the pulverized ice cloud that followed, I'm sure the drivers of both cars were happy to make it to the other side unscathed. See for yourself below.