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Third Section of Ledbetter Bridge Comes Down

Third Section of Ledbetter Bridge Comes Down
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By West Kentucky Star Staff
Oct. 01, 2014 | LEDBETTER, KY
By West Kentucky Star Staff Oct. 01, 2014 | 01:12 PM | LEDBETTER, KY
The final section of the Old Ledbetter Bridge was taken down with controlled explosives this morning, leaving only the piers from the 83-year-old structure still standing.

The demolition contractor now has until tomorrow morning to clear the ten 40-foot sections of steel truss from the river bottom and restore tow boat traffic on the Tennessee River. Two large barge-mounted cranes immediately moved to the area and began work Wednesday morning.

Like the previous two sections, this truss was pre-cut  in key locations before being loaded with explosives, so the sections would be easier to remove.

The detonation was delayed by a few minutes to allow the demolition team time to secure some wiring running to the explosives.

The crowd that came to watch this morning is believed to be largest of three detonations. Keith Todd of the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet thanked the public for their cooperation during the three detonations, saying there were only a few problems or traffic delays on the new Ledbetter Bridge caused by spectators trying to park in the wrong place.

The next round of work will focus on their piers, and Todd said it will take a few weeks to drill into the piers and prepare them for placement of explosives.

The contractor will remove the top half of the piers with detonations, then follow that with later blasts to take off the bottom of the piers.

Today’s blast caused the two piers supporting the main navigation span to crack and lean, so the demolition team will probably have to make some adjustments in planning for the next round of explosives work.
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