WEST MEMPHIS, Ark. — Officials shut down a major Mississippi River bridge Monday after a pier under a small approach span settled nearly 4 inches during the night in a construction zone.
The approach span for the Interstate 40 bridge was still supported by other piers, so the most motorists might have noticed would have been a slight dip, said Randy Ort, a spokesman for the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department.
He said the entire 1.5-mile-long bridge into downtown Memphis will remain closed until sometime Tuesday. Traffic over the river was diverted to the nearby I-55 bridge.
River bridges have been under scrutiny across the country since the Aug. 1 collapse of the I-35W bridge over the Mississippi River in Minneapolis killed 13 people. That bridge was undergoing repairs when it fell during the evening rush hour, dropping dozens of cars more than 60 feet into the Mississippi.
Near Memphis, an inspector noticed the problem on the I-40 approach just after rush hour Monday morning.
Ort said the problem was likely caused by additional, longer pilings being driven to improve the bridge's stability. While crews worked beneath one half of the bridge, the other half was carrying 35,600 vehicles daily.
"The settling was in the columns still under traffic, due to the construction adjacent to it," Ort said.
Workers have been improving bridges along I-40 to make them safer in case of earthquakes. The New Madrid fault runs through the area.
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