By David Ammons, The Associated Press
OLYMPIA — Gov. Chris Gregoire today asked Washington’s bridge inspectors for a quick report on the state’s 3,000 bridges, especially any that are similar to the span that collapsed in Minneapolis on Wednesday.
The state already has an inspection program that includes high-tech scrutiny of the bridges at least once every two years, and more often for those identified as potential problems, Department of Transportation spokesman Lloyd Brown said in an interview.
Gregoire and the Legislature are particularly worried about the potential collapse of two high-traffic spans in the Seattle area: the Alaskan Way Viaduct along the Elliott Bay waterfront and the Highway 520 floating bridge across Lake Washington. The Legislature has appropriated early spending for the projects, but design and full financing still are question marks.
Those potentially unsafe bridges are at risk because of the region’s earthquake danger and, in the case of the floating bridge, to wind and high waves, Brown said.
The state has few steel truss bridges like the one in Minnesota, but they are closely inspected, Brown said. Seattle’s Aurora Avenue Bridge, for instance, was inspected in June and found to be safe, he said. The Interstate 5 ship canal bridge in Seattle will be inspected this month, as previously scheduled, he said.
The agency didn’t take any additional steps Thursday because of the Minnesota tragedy, but will closely watch the engineers’ reports to see if there are any lessons for Washington, Brown said.
“We don’t know what (additional) to look for yet, based on what happened in Minnesota,” he said. “We will apply what we can learn.”
For now, the state can rely on an inspection program that has been a longtime priority of the agency’s, he said.
“We are out there every day with a very details and very good inspection program, with 65 people working on eight teams,” he said. “We use state-of-the-art technology, including X-ray, and we include licensed professional engineers on our inspection teams, a higher threshold than other states have.”
Paula Hammond, the acting DOT secretary, and state bridge engineer Jugesh Kapur will have the governor’s status report ready within days. The agency tracks bridge inspections as part of a regular report given to the governor, lawmakers and the state Transportation Commission.
Kapur briefed the governor’s senior staff this morning. Gregoire and Hammond sent condolences and offers of help to their counterparts in Minnesota, said the governor’s spokeswoman, Holly Armstrong.
The state has experienced several high-visibility bridge failures, including the original Tacoma Narrows Bridge, nicknamed Galloping Gertie, which collapsed in a windstorm in 1940, and large sections of the Hood Canal and Lake Washington floating bridges.
Brown said cities and counties have about 4,000 bridges. Some are inspected by the state and others are left to the local road departments to keep close watch, he said.
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On the Net:
Bridge program: http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/eesc/bridge/
Governor: http://www.governor.wa.gov
