Authorities suspect a truck weighing triple the posted load limit crossed bridges over Wainiha Stream last week causing “significant” damage to a critical segment of Kuhio Highway, state and county officials said yesterday. The weakening of the already deteriorating structures
Authorities suspect a truck weighing triple the posted load limit crossed bridges over Wainiha Stream last week causing “significant” damage to a critical segment of Kuhio Highway, state and county officials said yesterday.
The weakening of the already deteriorating structures jeopardized the ability of emergency vehicles and essential supplies to reach the North Shore, but crews expect to have the existing bridges shored up by today, state Transportation Department Deputy Director Brennon Morioka said.
Gov. Linda Lingle on Monday signed an emergency proclamation declaring the site a disaster area to accelerate construction of temporary replacements of Wainiha Bridges 1 and 3 that will restore access to Haena and Wainiha by mid-December.
The one-lane surrogates will be similar to the temporary bridge built in October 2004 for Wainiha Bridge 2. All three bridges have been slated for permanent replacements.
The vehicle weight limit for Wainiha Bridge 3, located on Kuhio Highway between miles 6 and 7, was dropped last week from six tons to three tons after the new damage was discovered.
Officials estimated the county’s lightest fire truck, loaded with water, weighs 12 tons and an ambulance at five tons.
Overloaded vehicles providing essential services — which also includes garbage, propane, food and sewage — will be allowed to cross on a permitted basis, Morioka said.
Round the clock restrictions will be in place over the next six to seven weeks while the temporary bridges are completed, he added.
The Kaua‘i Police Department has helped monitor the vehicles crossing the bridges, but state authorities took full responsibility starting last night, state Transportation Department Assistant District Engineer Ray McCormick said.
“Everything is consistent with a very large truck,” Morioka said. “There was a significant breach of protocol.”
Officials, who are speaking to residents in trying to confirm the culprit, said they have pinpointed the incident to a two-day period.
A bridge maintenance crew had inspected the 175-foot Wainiha Bridge 3 the afternoon of Oct. 24, and noticed substantial new damage the morning of Oct. 26, Morioka said.
He said a truck weighing an estimated 18 tons to 20 tons is suspected to have caused the damage.
It remained uncertain if criminal charges are possible. The state has fines it can issue, Morioka said, but it is “very difficult to hold someone accountable” without witnesses.
Mayor Bryan Baptiste said the existing bridges are in “pretty bad shape.”
Wainiha Bridges 1 and 2 were built as temporary structures in 1957, McCormick said.
“Our guys have worked on those bridges a lot since then,” he said.
Crews were out yesterday re-welding rods, he added, and cables will soon be installed for extra support.
Twelve tension rods support the structure, he said. After the incident last week, only two remained operational.
Ten rods were working yesterday and the remaining two will be repaired today, McCormick said.
When restored, the bridges will be limited to a maximum load of eight tons.
The Transportation Department will hold a North Shore community meeting next week to discuss the installation of the temporary bridges and short-term closures involved in the work. Date, time and location will be announced soon, a news release states.
“We keep the community very close to us so they know exactly what is going on,” McCormick said.
There will be one 24-hour closure, Morioka said, plus four or five overnight closures to complete the $4 million to $6 million temporary replacement project.
Plans to build permanent replacements are underway.
The Transportation Department is discussing conceptual designs with community members concerned the new bridges retain the rural character of the island, Morioka said.
It will take a couple years to complete the environmental documents and designs, he added, “then it’s a matter of securing funding.”
The permanent fix, the deputy director said, will be a “prominent project for the state.”
Replacing the 40-foot Wainiha Bridge 1, McCormick said, will not be a challenge.
The new Bridge 3 will be trickier and will end up at 185-feet long, he added.
The conceptual designs still call for one-lane bridges, as do the plans for the temporary replacements.
“We realize these bridges are vital to the North Shore community and we will make every effort to minimize inconveniences to the public,” state Transportation Director Barry Fukunaga says in a news release yesterday.
“The DOT has been meeting with the North Shore community of Kaua‘i to discuss the design of the permanent bridges for all three Wainiha Stream bridges,” he says. “The emergency work will not circumvent the permanent bridge projects, but will continue to allow safe access to the North Shore while that process continues.”
• Nathan Eagle, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 224) or neagle@kauaipubco.com.
