Date:  Thursday, December 27, 2007

Contact: Jerry Barsness, WSDOT Bridge Engineer, (360) 905-2200 (Vancouver)
Sylvia Ross, WSDOT Communications, (360) 852-2537 (Vancouver)

CHEHALIS – Forty men used little more than their hands and some basic tools to erect a 180-foot bridge in six days. They were largely WSDOT bridge crew workers, and the bridge is a temporary Bailey style bridge over the Chehalis River in the Meskill-Dryad area, connecting Leudinghaus Road and River Road to SR 6, where a county bridge previously washed out during the December floods.

The work began on December 18, when 40 WSDOT crew members, largely volunteers from all over Western Washington, showed up in Lewis County to construct the bridge, not knowing whether they would be home in time for Christmas. Six days later, and well ahead of Christmas, they put the finishing touches on the bridge and departed Lewis County.

They worked for 12 to 14 hours each day under near-freezing temperatures and pouring rain, sometimes with illumination to help work through the dark. They used mainly their hands, manual tools and two cranes to help with the project. They constructed the bridge on site, used their muscle power to move onto its alignment and secure it. And they loved every minute of it.

The Bailey style bridge is a military bridge invented by a British civil engineer, Donald Bailey, and designed to be constructed, moved and replaced in just several hours. Its original purpose was to help the military advance in war time. Its purpose today is to swiftly replace a bridge that has been washed out, before a new permanent bridge can be constructed. It is deconstructed into pieces that are stored, waiting for assembly on site. The components of this bridge came from WSDOT’s storage facility in Tacoma. It consists of 295 total panels and transoms, and 450 pins holding them all together. There are very few of these bridges in Washington State and only this one in the Southwest region of the state.

The Bailey bridge will remain in place until Lewis County constructs a permanent replacement, likely in about 18 months. The cost for this bridge is $250,000. 

View a slideshow of photos on our Flickr account detailing the building of this bridge.


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