I-40 bridge begins reopening Monday arkansasonline.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from arkansasonline.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
A rush to judgment raises questions about bridge inspections
MATT STROUD, The Daily Memphian
July 24, 2021
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1of3Monty Frazier, 51, and wife Shelly Frazier, 49, pose at their Natural Dam, Ark., home. Monty Frazier is a former bridge inspector with the Arkansas Department of Transportation (ArDOT), who led the 2019 and 2021 inspections of the Hernando de Soto Bridge that connects Memphis, Tenn. to Arkansas over the Mississippi River. ArDOT officials fired Frazier after a contractor identified a crack in the bridge s tie girders. (Matt Stroud/Daily Memphian via AP)Matt Stroud/APShow MoreShow Less
2of3Monty Frazier, 51, and wife Shelly Frazier, 49, pose at their Natural Dam, Ark., home. Monty Frazier is a former bridge inspector with the Arkansas Department of Transportation (ArDOT), who led the 2019 and 2021 inspections of the Hernando de Soto Bridge that connects Memphis, Tenn. to Arkansas over the Mississippi River. ArDOT officials fired Frazier
One cracked bridge One person fired A troubling rush to judgment raises major questions about bridge inspections arktimes.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from arktimes.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Work has commenced on the Interstate-40 bridge in the US in preparation for the start of repairs to a fault that went unnoticed for at least two years
The Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) has appointed Kiewit Infrastructure Group to undertake the repairs. The contractor started work last week with the installation of a temporary platform at the site.
The repairs will be divided into two phases of work. Phase one involves adding two 9m steel plates on either side of the fracture to strengthen the bridge for contractors and equipment to safely work on the phase two repairs.
Phase two will cut out and replace the damaged section and inspect the structure for any additional concerns that need to be addressed before the bridge can be reopened to traffic.
1/2 Break found in supporting beam
2/2 I-40 bridge spans the Mississippi River
A major road bridge over the Mississippi River has been closed after a complete break was discovered in one of its steel support beams.
The fault was found during a routine inspection of the Interstate 40 steel tied arch bridge – also known as the Hernando DeSoto Bridge – that connects Arkansas with Memphis in the USA.
Arkansas Department of Transportation director Lorie Tudor said that the fault had the potential of becoming a catastrophic event had it not been caught.
The cause of the damage is under investigation, but Tudor said stress caused by wear and tear on the 50-year-old bridge was likely a factor.