Tennessee Department of Transportation via AP
Originally published on May 13, 2021 1:02 pm
Traffic on and below a major bridge over the Mississippi River near Memphis, Tenn., could be halted for several days or longer, causing significant disruptions to motorists and shipping, officials said Wednesday.
Authorities in Arkansas and Tennessee, along with the U.S. Coast Guard, indefinitely stopped all traffic related to the Hernando de Soto Bridge on Interstate 40 after inspectors discovered a crack in the steel structure Tuesday, and Tennessee officials said repairs could take some time.
The bridge connects Memphis to West Memphis, Ark., and is above a crucial waterway for barges transporting crops to export markets. Crews have begun emergency repairs.
I-40 Bridge Over Mississippi Could Be Shut Down For Months; Inspectors Called 911
The Weather Channel 2 hrs ago Jan Wesner Childs
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A busy interstate bridge over the Mississippi River could remain shut down for months after a crack was found in a steel support beam.
The Interstate 40 bridge that connects Arkansas with Memphis, Tennessee, was closed Tuesday after the crack was found during a routine inspection. River traffic under the bridge was also halted.
Inspectors were so alarmed by the crack that they called 911 to warn that traffic on the bridge needed to be stopped immediately.
“We just found a super critical finding that needs traffic shut down in both directions on the I-40 Mississippi River bridge, one of them told a 911 operator, according to audio obtained by WREG-TV.
The Hernando de Soto Bridge that carries Interstate 40 across the Mississippi River between Memphis, Tennessee, and West Memphis, Arkansas is closed indefinitely after a bridge inspector discovered a significant fracture earlier this week, Mike Steenhoek, executive director of the Soy Transportation Coalition, reported Wednesday. The crack, which is located on a beam essential to the bridge’s structural integrity, was identified during a routine inspection that occurs every two years, he said.
In addition to the suspension of vehicular traffic across the bridge, Steenhoek said the closure has resulted in a temporary suspension of barge traffic passing underneath the bridge.
Credit Arkansas Department of Transportation
The “significant fracture” that shut down the 48-year-old Hernando de Soto Bridge across the Mississippi River between West Memphis and Memphis on Tuesday could have led to a “catastrophic event,” according to Arkansas Department of Transportation Director Lori Tudor, and it’s too early to tell when either a short-term or long-term solution will be available.
The fracture is located about three-fourths of the way across the bridge from West Memphis to Memphis near where the two arches meet to form an “M.”
Tudor made her remarks during a Wednesday press conference where she said the fracture was discovered early in the afternoon on May 11 and occurred on one of two 900-foot, 24-inch-by-32-inch steel beams supporting the span across the river. In a press conference in Memphis, Tennessee Department of Transportation Chief Engineer Paul Degges said it was too early to tell when the bridge will reopen.
May 13, 2021 By Shelley Byrne
(Note: This is an updated and expanded version of a story that was initially posted on Waterwaysjournal.net May 12. This story will be updated as needed.)
The Coast Guard closed the Lower Mississippi River in both directions for a mile on either side of the Hernando de Soto Bridge in Memphis, Tenn., following the discovery May 11 of a crack in one of the main beams supporting it.
The closure is between Mile 736 and 737. The bridge carries Interstate 40 between Memphis and West Memphis, Ark. Vehicular traffic was being rerouted via I-55, which crosses the river just downstream.