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 A screen capture of the Web cam images published on the Missouri Department of Transportation Web site shows a gap in the Missouri River bridge at Miami where explosive charges were used to begin demolition of the bridge about 8 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 27. (MoDOT/Contributed photo) [Click to enlarge] [Order this photo] |
Charges were placed along sections of the bridge to maximize clearance of the steel structure without damaging the concrete piers, according to a MoDOT news release. The piers will be used to support the new bridge once constructed.
Two subsequent implosions will take place over the coming weeks. The implosion can be viewed from the public river access area near the bridge, MoDOT officials said.
 An image provided by the Missouri Department of Transportation showing what the Missouri River bridge at Miami will look like when the renovation project is completed next year. (MoDOT/Contributed photo) [Click to enlarge] |
When completed, the bridge will have new decking and girders and be 26-feet wide (11-foot lanes with 2-foot shoulders). The life expectancy of the new bridge is 50-plus years.
Last year, explosive charges were used successfully in the demolition of the Missouri River bridget at Glasgow, which was a project nearly identical to the Miami bridge project.
That project has since been completed.
On the Net:
www.modot.mo.gov/northcentral/miamibridg...
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Volleyballmom, my best guess is that there was a whole lot more to preparing for the setoff of charges than just carrying boxes of explosives out onto the bridge and firing them. They undoubtedly removed a bunch of stuff that could be easily removed, then the charges had to be attached the right way to just the right spots. It's not like the movies where the bad guys light a stick of dynamite with a cigar and throw it onto the middle of the bridge.
Why did they close the bridge so early if they were going to start working on it this late? Going through Malta Bend has been a big inconvience because of the road construction. I live in Brunswick and now instead of a 30 minute drive it takes me at least 55 minutes. But when they are working on the highway it could take up to an additional 20-30 minutes. I hope this bridge is worth all the extra trouble it is causing. I know I could go through Slater, but that is a little longer and the deer are worse on that stretch of highway.