"We've had several calls this morning about a barge hit on the Shawneetown Bridge," reports Keith Todd, Kentucky Transportation Cabinet spokesman. "No barge hit occurred."
According to Union County Emergency Management, the bridge was closed to traffic as a precaution about 8:30 this morning when five barges broke loose from a fleeting area upstream from Shawneetown.
The runaway barges were rounded up by a harbor tug from a nearby coal-loading facility before they reached the bridge. After holding up traffic for about 20 minutes and determining the bridge had not been struck, normal traffic flow was allowed to resume.
The bridge remains open to normal traffic flow.
Any additional information on the incident will have to come from the U.S. Coast Guard Louisville at 1-800-253-7465.
The Shawneetown Bridge connects Ky. 56 with Ill. 13 across the Ohio River between Morganfield and Shawneetown. About 3,800 vehicles cross the bridge in an average day.
The bridge opened to traffic in 1956, maintaining a historic transportation link that started with ferry service at the site as early as 1802.
