Their careers brought them to the city. The Interstate 35W bridge was supposed to carry them home. But the five people killed when the bridge dropped into the Mississippi River were stuck in rush-hour traffic at the worst possible place at the worst possible time.

Patrick Holmes, 36, had crossed the bridge thousands of times in the five years he'd worked as an exercise therapist in Bloomington. He was headed home to pick up his 6-year-old son and 4-year-old daughter from a friend who watched them while his wife, Jennifer, played golf.

She can't fathom why this time, it collapsed underneath him, sending vehicles into the water, crushing many under concrete and steel.

"How can you know why?" she wondered. "We don't have control over what happens."

Salesman Artemio Trinidad-Mena, 29, was returning to his 2-month-old daughter and wife Abundia Martinez after a day of meeting with the clients of New York Plaza Produce. The illegal immigrant's wages helped support three other children, ages 2-11, in their home state of Guerrero, Mexico.

"He was the best man I'd ever met, a friendly guy, a happy guy. If you ever had a problem, he'd say, 'Don't be sad. You have to live a happy life,'" said co-worker Imelda Riera. "He made everyone feel good. He was that kind of person.

"I'd complain about forgetting about my keys or something and having to go home ... he'd say, 'No problem, no problem. I'll go get it for you.'"

A Mexican flag adorned a memorial at his home Friday, where people left white roses and dollars in a donation box. His widow hopes to raise enough money to take his body home to the nation he left a decade ago.

Sherry Engebretsen had also been eager to get home that day. Daughter Anne was leaving for dance camp, and she wanted to say goodbye.

The 60-year-old marketing director was having a bad day, husband Ronald said. Perhaps that's why she skipped her ordinary route to Shoreview, the 10th Avenue bridge, and opted for I-35W.

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