Crews standing by as rivers recede.
The old Amelia Earhart Bridge is still standing after numerous scheduling setbacks. But not for much longer.
“The current delay is because the river came up. All the rains to the north of us comes down the river and the river raised. And all the trash came into the river with that raising, so it’s not safe to have divers in there,” said KDOT Engineer Michelle Anschutz.
Crews have carefully placed explosives along the bridge, which will bring down the steel in a matter of seconds.
“There’s about 320 individual explosive charges on this bridge, because basically it’s going down from the Kansas side to the Missouri side, all the way,” said V.P. of Advanced Explosives Demolition Eric Kelly.
“We add the explosives, cuts through it like a knife, and down to the ground it goes. It’ll drop straight down,” said Owner of Advanced Explosives Demolition Lisa Kelly.
Once the old bridge hits the water, crews will work to drag out the steel within 24 hours.
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