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Bridge Strike off St. Louis

Bridge Strike off St. Louis

Barge Strike Eads Bridge
Photo: fox2now.com

On the afternoon of November 14, a tanker barge struck allided on the Mississippi River off St. Louis, Missouri. The Coast Guard reported that 6 tanker barges loaded light cycle oil had broken free from a tow on the Mississippi River. One of these barges struck the Eads Bridge, but there was no damage to the tanker barge and no pollution was released.

 

All six barges were later recovered later the same day. Reports were not clear what the cause the barges to break free. An aerial inspection of the bridge did not reveal any visible damage. The incident is under investigation.

 

Barges Strikes Bridge

Barges Strikes Bridge

Photo: Twitter
Photo: Twitter

A string of barges struck the Martin Luther King Bridge spanning the Mississippi River at St. Louis, Missouri.  The empty barges were headed upstream when they struck a support beam of the MLK bridge causing it to be closed to traffic.   The nearby Eads bridge was also closed to traffic as witnesses reported that the barges had made contact a swell.  One witness stated the impact sounded like an explosion.   An inspection of the bridges found there was no damage except some scrapes to the scaffolding under the rail deck. Traffic was allowed on both bridges a few hours later.

MLK 2

The cause of the allision was under investigation.  Reports state the barges had passed under the bridges at an unusual angle.  A later USCG report stated that debris had jammed the towboat’s rudder resulting in the allision.

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