Ontario bridge collapses with dump truck on it
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Published:
February 23, 2018
Updated:
February 23, 2018 9:57 PM EST
PORT BRUCE, Ont. – A bridge collapse in this flood-hit Elgin County town left firefighters scrambling Friday to rescue a dump-truck driver whose vehicle was crossing the structure when it buckled after days of heavy rain and snow melting.
Police have closed Imperial Rd. between Dexter and Rush Creek lines following the collapse, the OPP announced shortly before 1 p.m. Friday. The dump truck that was crossing when it collapsed was left precariously on what remained of the two-lane bridge, just barely out of the water of Catfish Creek.
No one was hurt, Elgin OPP say.
The bridge is the main entrance into this lakeside community east of Port Stanley, with a permanent population of about 200. That’s forced the residents to take a five-kilometre detour to avoid the collapsed bridge.
This photo of the collapsed bridge in the flood-hit Elgin County community of Port Bruce was submitted to Postmedia Friday by Brad Semotiuk. (Supplied)
“It’s a long way around. It’s the main way in and out,” Malahide Township Mayor David Mennill said, adding the bridge dates back to the 1960s and has seen a lot of truck traffic over the decades.
“We are still investigating what happened and whether it is flood-related. There must have been a weakness in the structure.”
Mennill said the community could be without that key road connection for some time: “This is not an overnight repair. This will take a long time.”
Work crews from the township are on-site and are asking everyone to stay clear of the area, said Suzanna Dieleman, the township’s director of corporate services.
Port Bruce was especially hard hit by this week’s flooding. Rising waters on Tuesday closed several streets and left houses submerged, prompting the OPP to set up a command centre. Contingency plans were made to evacuate parts of the town, but those were abandoned after the water began receding Tuesday night.
Mennill said bridge supports could have been stressed by the surging creek.
“There’s been more discharged in the last few days than we have ever seen in Port Bruce but it never came up to the bottom of the bridge,” he said.
Another local politician, Rick Cerna, chairs the Catfish Creek Conservation Authority. He was startled by the collapse.
“The levels were high but they had receded from their flood banks. I don’t understand why the bridge gave out,” he said.
Wednesday, the main bridge to the Bruce County community of Chesley had to be closed indefinitely when the supports under the bridge were dislodged by surging flood waters.
— With files from Dale Carruthers, Louis Pin and Hank Daniszewski, Postmedia
Ontario bridge collapses with dump truck on it | Toronto Sun
Postmedia News
More from Postmedia News
Published:
February 23, 2018
Updated:
February 23, 2018 9:57 PM EST
PORT BRUCE, Ont. – A bridge collapse in this flood-hit Elgin County town left firefighters scrambling Friday to rescue a dump-truck driver whose vehicle was crossing the structure when it buckled after days of heavy rain and snow melting.
Police have closed Imperial Rd. between Dexter and Rush Creek lines following the collapse, the OPP announced shortly before 1 p.m. Friday. The dump truck that was crossing when it collapsed was left precariously on what remained of the two-lane bridge, just barely out of the water of Catfish Creek.
No one was hurt, Elgin OPP say.
The bridge is the main entrance into this lakeside community east of Port Stanley, with a permanent population of about 200. That’s forced the residents to take a five-kilometre detour to avoid the collapsed bridge.
This photo of the collapsed bridge in the flood-hit Elgin County community of Port Bruce was submitted to Postmedia Friday by Brad Semotiuk. (Supplied)
“It’s a long way around. It’s the main way in and out,” Malahide Township Mayor David Mennill said, adding the bridge dates back to the 1960s and has seen a lot of truck traffic over the decades.
“We are still investigating what happened and whether it is flood-related. There must have been a weakness in the structure.”
Mennill said the community could be without that key road connection for some time: “This is not an overnight repair. This will take a long time.”
Work crews from the township are on-site and are asking everyone to stay clear of the area, said Suzanna Dieleman, the township’s director of corporate services.
Port Bruce was especially hard hit by this week’s flooding. Rising waters on Tuesday closed several streets and left houses submerged, prompting the OPP to set up a command centre. Contingency plans were made to evacuate parts of the town, but those were abandoned after the water began receding Tuesday night.
Mennill said bridge supports could have been stressed by the surging creek.
“There’s been more discharged in the last few days than we have ever seen in Port Bruce but it never came up to the bottom of the bridge,” he said.
Another local politician, Rick Cerna, chairs the Catfish Creek Conservation Authority. He was startled by the collapse.
“The levels were high but they had receded from their flood banks. I don’t understand why the bridge gave out,” he said.
Wednesday, the main bridge to the Bruce County community of Chesley had to be closed indefinitely when the supports under the bridge were dislodged by surging flood waters.
— With files from Dale Carruthers, Louis Pin and Hank Daniszewski, Postmedia
Ontario bridge collapses with dump truck on it | Toronto Sun
