Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) Facebook
The Hernando DeSoto Bridge, which carries I-40 across the Mississippi River between Tennessee and Arkansas, was suddenly closed on May 11 when engineers from the Arkansas Department of Transport discovered a fractured support beam during a routine inspection. Since then, new information has come to light revealing that damage to the bridge has been visible and evident as far back as 2016.
The Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) announced it had awarded a contract for the emergency repair of the bridge to Kiewit Infrastructure Group. TDOT said the work would be completed in two phases beginning as early as May 19, and that both phases would be completed before the bridge could be reopened.
Mississippi River Reopens, Freeing Over 1,000 Stuck Barges
A boat hauling barges down the Mississippi River moves toward the Interstate 40 bridge May 14. (Adrian Sainz/Associated Press)
The U.S. Coast Guard has reopened the Mississippi River to maritime traffic, ending a shutdown that stranded more than 1,000 barges on the key conduit for agriculture exports.
The river reopened as of 9 a.m. CDT on May 14, according to the Coast Guard, providing relief to the queue of 62 vessels and 1,058 barges stranded on the north and south sides of the Interstate 40 Hernando DeSoto Bridge near Memphis, Tenn. The waterway had been closed since May 11 after a crack was found in the truss of the bridge.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. River traffic has reopened on the Mississippi River near Memphis, Tennessee, three days after it was closed when a crack was discovered in the Interstate 40 bridge that connects Tennessee and Arkansas, the U.S. Coast Guard said Friday.
River traffic has reopened on the Mississippi River near Memphis, Tennessee, three days after it was closed when a crack was discovered in the Interstate 40 bridge that connects Tennessee and Arkansas, the U.S. Coast Guard said Friday.
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