Final truss of old Ledbetter Bridge brought down

PHOTO BY DARYL K. TABOR, THE PRESS

The third and final truss section of the old Ledbetter Bridge at Paducah was taken down with the use of controlled explosives, this morning. The demolition team detonated the center truss section of the 83-year old structure that crosses the main navigation channel of the Tennessee River.

The demolition contractor now has until tomorrow morning to clear steel from the river bottom and restore tow boat traffic at the site. Two large barge-mounted cranes immediately moved to the downed truss and started pulling steel from the river bottom.

Like the previous two sections to be detonated, the center truss was pre-cut in key locations before being loaded with explosives. This allowed the detonation to cut it into about ten 40-foot sections to make the steel easier to remove.

The detonation this morning was delayed by a few minutes to allow the demolition team time to secure some wiring used to set off explosives on the bridge.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KyTC), the contractor and area law enforcement again made arrangements for the public to observe the detonation from the deck of the new U.S. 60 Tennessee River Bridge that connects Livingston and McCracken counties. The crowd this morning is believed to be largest to witness the series of three detonations to bring down the truss spans.

Once the contractor clears the debris from the river, efforts will turn to removing the four main piers that supported the old structure.

According to KyTC spokesman Keith Todd, there will likely be a delay of a few weeks to allow drilling of the piers to prepare them for placement of explosives. Todd said during Round 4 of blasting, the contractor plans to remove the top half of two of the piers followed by the top half of the other two piers. The contractor would then come back to take off the bottom of two piers, followed by the bottom of the other two.

The impact of today’s blast caused the two river piers that supported the main navigation span to rock over, leaving cracks in both. Going forward, that may require the demolition team to make some adjustments in planning for the next round of explosives work.

The old Ledbetter Bridge opened to traffic in 1931. U.S. 60 traffic moved to the new bridge on July 31, 2013.