APNewsBreak: DOT didn't flag caution on I-5 span

Source: Associated Press

Jun 20, 1:31 PM EDT

By MIKE BAKER
Associated Press

OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) -- Starting in the 1970s, Washington state bridge inspectors made note of evidence that large
loads were clipping the Interstate 5 span that recently collapsed into the Skagit River.

By the middle of last year, an inspector identified eight different points on the bridge that had high-load damage,
including some portions in which components were deformed by the impact. Then, last fall, inspectors encountered
perhaps the worst damage yet: A tall vehicle traveling northbound had struck the overhead bridge structure, ripping
a 3-inch gash in the steel, causing three portions to distort and tearing off surrounding paint, according to images
and documents obtained by The Associated Press under public records law.

Even after that, state officials still didn't take precautions to prevent truckers from doing it again.

The AP found that Washington state's Department of Transportation regularly puts detailed warnings on its trucking
permits when routes are projected to encounter potentially problematic areas of low clearance. But despite the history
of issues on the Skagit River bridge, the state never added warnings to permits for that span.


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