MANKATO — When he arrived at the remains of the I-35W bridge at about 4 a.m. the morning after its collapse, Dale Plemmons had an important — if somewhat counterintuitive — task.

Plemmons and bridge inspectors had to make sure the bridge, after crashing violently to the ground and into the Mississippi River, wouldn’t rain debris on recovery personnel.

It was mostly stable, except for a few times when debris fell only feet away from workers.

The scene would keep him awake in nights to come as he lay in his North Mankato bed.

Everyone has seen pictures of the wreckage, but “it’s not the same as being on site,” he said.

Plemmons is safety administrator for the 7th District of the Minnesota Department of Transportation, headquartered in Mankato. He’s responsible for the safety of MnDOT workers as they build and maintain roads and bridges.

He was the first MnDOT safety inspector from greater Minnesota to work at the site, where he spent two days and 40 hours.

After he and others verified that workers could safely walk on the bridge, Plemmons’ role focused on making sure that MnDOT employees in the area were safe. He worked with officials from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, or OSHA.

Most of the transportation work wasn’t on the bridge, as it involved setting up detours and assessing the traffic issues in the area.

Once, though, he had to tell a pair of machine-gun toting Secret Service officers who were guarding First Lady Laura Bush to leave the bridge.

Plemmons doesn’t think he’ll be called back to the site, as safety administrators from elsewhere in the state have come.

Still, it appears as if part of his mind is still in Minneapolis, thinking about the victims, about his time there, about whether he’ll go back.

He has a portfolio of pictures he took as part of the investigation.

His favorites help tell stories about the victims who survived and helped others.