Contractor crews working for the Washington State Department of Transportation to temporarily repair the state Route 410 White River Bridge encountered several challenges during the past 24 hours that will delay the bridge’s reopening until the afternoon of Saturday.
Crews need to install a temporary support structure to shore up the damaged SR 410 White River Bridge before working to straighten a damaged overhead beam. The temporary support structure was scheduled to be complete this morning, but the project team did not receive the proper materials needed to finish its construction, which required WSDOT to delay the opening of the bridge.
“The temporary support structure is critical to completing repairs to the damaged bridge,” said WSDOT Assistant Regional Administrator Amir Rasaie. “Our contractor completed work on the temporary support system late this afternoon. But, there’s still a lot of work to be done, including up to 48 hours of repair work to the damaged supports.”
Contractors are using a heat-straightening method to repair a damaged overhead steel beam. This method applies controlled heat in repetitive, heating-and-cooling cycles to gradually straighten the damaged beams.
“We wanted to give drivers advanced notice of this change so they can adjust their travel plans,” said Rasaie. “We are disappointed the bridge won’t be open Friday morning, but our contractor is working around the clock to reopen it as soon as possible.”
WSDOT closed the SR 410 White River Bridge Saturday, April 4, after a routine inspection uncovered damage to the bridge’s overhead-support structure. Bridge engineers believe an over-height load struck the bridge in the westbound lanes, putting a large dent in the horizontal beam. A low-clearance warning sign is posted along the shoulder approaching the bridge.
The Washington State Patrol is seeking witnesses: Anyone who saw an over-height vehicle that may have struck the bridge is urged to call the WSP at 425-401-7788
.
WSDOT publishes minimum and maximum bridge heights for each direction of travel. The minimum and maximum measurements may fall inside or outside the traveling lanes, including shoulders. If an operator has an oversized load between the minimum and maximum measurements, they are responsible for checking all vertical clearances prior to travel.
WSDOT engineers estimate the total cost of both the temporary repair and permanent fix to the SR 410 White River Bridge at approximately $1.5 million.
Detour information
Drivers in the area are encouraged to allow extra time. SR 410 is closed to all but local traffic at 244th Avenue Southeast in Enumclaw and Park Avenue in Buckley. Drivers traveling between Enumclaw and Buckley can detour via State Route 164, State Route 18, State Route 167 and SR 410. Local residents can call 253-372-393 for a recorded message about the bridge’s status.
The SR 410 White River Bridge is a steel truss bridge built in 1949. It was last inspected April 20, 2013. Approximately 20,000 vehicles use this stretch of SR 410 daily.
