All lanes on the Interstate 10 high rise bridge in New Orleans. were reopened Nov. 21 after two eastbound lanes were closed last week due to a tire fire that charred three girders, weakening the bridge’s support structure.
In a news release the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development said construction crews working to patch the bridge managed to make enough repairs for all lanes to reopen safely ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday period. Boh Brothers Construction Co. is performing the emergency repairs.
Authorities had shut down the I-10 high rise in both directions after the New Orleans fire department received a report of a trash fire underneath the bridge just after 9 p.m.
Firefighters arrived to find a large fire fueled by old tires at a former vehicle inspection station that was not in use, according to the fire department. The blaze was burning under the high rise near the Downman Road exit.
Crews attacked the blaze but called a second alarm at 9:28 p.m. after the bridge’s stability came into question. After getting the fire under control, crews noticed damage to the high rise’s support columns, the fire department said.
DOTD closed the bridge’s eastbound span over the Industrial Canal – a main artery into New Orleans East from the rest of the city. DOTD deemed it safe enough to open the rightmost eastbound lane last Friday, ahead of emergency work that began over the weekend to fix girders scalded by the fire.
A New Orleans Police Department spokesman said Monday that the fire’s cause still has not been determined.
DOTD spokeswoman Bambi Hall assured drivers that the bridge is once again safe and that the steel inside the concrete girders, columns and caps are all intact.
Through an initial inspection, Hall said DOTD engineers had determined that the damaged bridge would need temporary shoring installed underneath it to provide structural support until permanent girder repairs can be made.
