WENATCHEE, Wash. — A Washington Transportation Department official says the Beebe Bridge that carries U.S. Highway 97 across the Columbia River near Chelan Falls may be closed as long as two weeks as the state repairs damage from a fatal truck accident.
DOT's Dave Bierschbach says he's very concerned about the stability of the bridge where a tractor-trailer cab crashed through its railing. He says the roadway across the bridge has sagged about four inches near the site of Monday's accident, which tore off a vertical hanger and damaged two beams.
Washington State Patrol Trooper Rich Magnusson says the trucking company confirmed there were two drivers in the big rig. The tractor broke free and plunged into the river below. The trailer broke apart, scattering its load of boxes of apples. Divers have found the body of 48-year-old Kathleen Walker of Olympia. Magnusson says the other driver was a man from Olympia. A search failed to turn up his body.
Posted in News on Wednesday, September 2, 2009 12:00 am
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