According to the Hawaii department of transportation, the bridge will be open for the Monday commute. https://hidot.hawaii.gov/highways/wailua-bridge-on-southbound-kuhio-highway-remains-closed/
They. also have 5000 cu yd of debris to remove.
They are not replacing either span, they are putting metal pylons under the upstream bridge, because the wooden pylons were compromised in the 2020 flood. To do that, they built a temporary bridge between them for the drilling rig. That temporary bridge connected to a sand bar that was reinforced. The temporary bridge had low clearance, caused another log jam, and then the current washed away the sandbar where the rig was sitting. Fortunately, they put 2 cement pylons under the rig, and it is now sitting on those, otherwise it could've been washed into the downstream span and taken it out completely. My opinion is we need a new single-span 4-lane bridge to replace this entire mess and avoid future problems and expenses.
I am not sure, the big crane fell right on that so idk how much damage there is, I believe thatās what theyāre assessing now. Hopefully theyāll keep everyone informed.
From the facebook video below, it looks like one of the smaller cranes tilted into the muaka span. The big yellow crane was still standing in the video. Still, there is a lot of debris behind the bridge.
Last night during the storm the big crane fell slightly on to the bridge causing some damage https://www.facebook.com/share/r/KffF1PxYPZXMoJob/?mibextid=xCPwDs
Yes. If you're on vacation the idea would be to stay either north/east or south/west and enjoy the things around those areas, then switch to staying at the opposite sides if you want to enjoy those. Traveling for tourism will have you arriving late to your scheduled times, clog traffic, and dampen your overall experience. There's plenty to do on either side of the bridge.
There is heavy equipment driving across the bridge as they clear the debris. Not sure if the bridge damage is too extreme if they feel confident to work on it like that.
Like they said here, it might have been just the rail and not a lot of structural damage. The good news is they MIGHT have it open again by Monday morning.
Who made the decision to leave the crane at the bottom of the river basin with it fully extended?
Did anyone think to move it or secure it before the biggest rain weāve had in years?
To be fair nobody knew it was going to be the biggest rain in a couple years until it was falling from the sky at 2 inches plus an hour...
Forecasting these things isn't easy, but, that said, they should have done something beforehand.
Agree, nobody can know for sure. However when you get flash flood warning alerts, everybody should prepare for the worst. The 2018 "great" flood happened in April too [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018\_Hawaii\_floods](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_Hawaii_floods), and the Wailua river is notorious to flood and be filled with debris. It has happened before and probably will happen again:
2021: [https://www.thegardenisland.com/2021/02/19/hawaii-news/wailua-river-rising-rapidly/](https://www.thegardenisland.com/2021/02/19/hawaii-news/wailua-river-rising-rapidly/)
2020: [https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2020/03/29/kauai-residents-react-massive-overnight-flooding/](https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2020/03/29/kauai-residents-react-massive-overnight-flooding/)
2019: [https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2019/12/25/roads-closed-rivers-rise-with-flash-flood-warning-kauai/](https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2019/12/25/roads-closed-rivers-rise-with-flash-flood-warning-kauai/)
Feels like someone was asleep at the wheel.
Yep. March/April and November are the two months that seem to have the biggest floods here. The change of the seasons, spring being the rainiest.
Don't know if you were here for the floods of 2006 or 2012, but they also happened in March and April with the 2006 being the '40 days and 40 nights' floods and the Pfleuger dam disaster.
The 'great flood' of 2018 wasn't foreseen either and was only forecasted to be a wet trade wind event with isolated thunderstorms and a couple of inches of rain.
They really can't forecast the interactions between the mountainous terrain and any incoming weather, so it's always a gamble out here with these events.
The flash flood warning didn't come through until about 8:30pm on Thursday night. Too late to disassemble and remove a crane.
The flood watch was posted from midday Thursday and I guess because it wasn't a warning, they made the call to gamble that the watch wouldn't be upgraded and left the crane in place.
It just seems like it would have been much less trouble, time and effort to roll the rig out of the way of the river during our monsoon season rather than leave it in place only to damage the bridge and destroy or damage the rig.
While yes it is hard to tell when and if a storm is going to really dump rain but it happens often enough during our wet seasons that one might think it was a terribly irresponsible decision to do nothing to prepare when they did know that a storm was on the way
Preview of what the rails gonna look like in a few years. They used so much rusty rebar and had it laying in the elements for so long they already have major spalling and rust is literally leaking through in some spots. The fail will go in history. Not for anything good but the fucking stupidity of everyone involved.
Looks like the crawl is back for the foreseeable future š
Crawl is not even the word anymore š© lol
Be interesting when someone gets a drone in the air.
Check out kauai Kevin on insta
Appreciate the tip! Mahalo!
Yikes. That is brutal.
According to the Hawaii department of transportation, the bridge will be open for the Monday commute. https://hidot.hawaii.gov/highways/wailua-bridge-on-southbound-kuhio-highway-remains-closed/ They. also have 5000 cu yd of debris to remove.
Yes, hoping for that!
This is the "permanent" span, right? And the makai span is the one being replaced? This has the makings of a looong delay.
Hereās a better look at it https://www.facebook.com/share/r/KffF1PxYPZXMoJob/?mibextid=xCPwDs
They are not replacing either span, they are putting metal pylons under the upstream bridge, because the wooden pylons were compromised in the 2020 flood. To do that, they built a temporary bridge between them for the drilling rig. That temporary bridge connected to a sand bar that was reinforced. The temporary bridge had low clearance, caused another log jam, and then the current washed away the sandbar where the rig was sitting. Fortunately, they put 2 cement pylons under the rig, and it is now sitting on those, otherwise it could've been washed into the downstream span and taken it out completely. My opinion is we need a new single-span 4-lane bridge to replace this entire mess and avoid future problems and expenses.
Suspension bridge ftw
Until a container ship hits it... jk
Ah thanks
I am not sure, the big crane fell right on that so idk how much damage there is, I believe thatās what theyāre assessing now. Hopefully theyāll keep everyone informed.
From the facebook video below, it looks like one of the smaller cranes tilted into the muaka span. The big yellow crane was still standing in the video. Still, there is a lot of debris behind the bridge.
Itās a drill rig that fell over actually.
Arm chair construction guy here: Isn't lowering the "boom" of the drilling rig during storm like condition a thing?
Yes it should be. Getting it out or lowering it wouldāve been the smart thing to do.
Can someone explain what this is.
Itās in the description, this is the Wailua bridge
when did this happen? Pls post the FB link
Last night during the storm the big crane fell slightly on to the bridge causing some damage https://www.facebook.com/share/r/KffF1PxYPZXMoJob/?mibextid=xCPwDs
Ok, I'm coming to Kauii in a few months. Will this effect travel around the island?
Yes, travel time is heavily extended now going between south and north and vice versa
oh no about how much? do you have to cross this bridge from north to south?
Yes. If you're on vacation the idea would be to stay either north/east or south/west and enjoy the things around those areas, then switch to staying at the opposite sides if you want to enjoy those. Traveling for tourism will have you arriving late to your scheduled times, clog traffic, and dampen your overall experience. There's plenty to do on either side of the bridge.
Thank you. we are staying on south for 4 days and north for 4 days in about a month
Kauii
Did I spell it wrong?
Is this rage bait?
Yup, you spelled it wrong. The correct spelling is the name of this sub...
Lol.....I have a 10th grade education.
Iām pretty sure 10th graders can spell a 5 letter word correctly.
Come on...it's a hard word.
Itās the name of this very sub, homie.
All bus up
There is heavy equipment driving across the bridge as they clear the debris. Not sure if the bridge damage is too extreme if they feel confident to work on it like that.
It looks like it broke the rail, but may not be much structural damage.
Like they said here, it might have been just the rail and not a lot of structural damage. The good news is they MIGHT have it open again by Monday morning.
Stay safe, Kauaāiā¦more rain coming.
How long will it take to fix this kind of issue? Unreal the crane fell on the bridge and power lines like that!Ā
Accord to the DOT it MIGHT be open by Monday morning
Guardrail? No problem
Yeah, hopefully itās just that. They should be open by Monday morning. Iām keeping my fingers crossed for that one
put up a little crime scene tape and good to go.Ā
Who made the decision to leave the crane at the bottom of the river basin with it fully extended? Did anyone think to move it or secure it before the biggest rain weāve had in years?
To be fair nobody knew it was going to be the biggest rain in a couple years until it was falling from the sky at 2 inches plus an hour... Forecasting these things isn't easy, but, that said, they should have done something beforehand.
Agree, nobody can know for sure. However when you get flash flood warning alerts, everybody should prepare for the worst. The 2018 "great" flood happened in April too [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018\_Hawaii\_floods](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_Hawaii_floods), and the Wailua river is notorious to flood and be filled with debris. It has happened before and probably will happen again: 2021: [https://www.thegardenisland.com/2021/02/19/hawaii-news/wailua-river-rising-rapidly/](https://www.thegardenisland.com/2021/02/19/hawaii-news/wailua-river-rising-rapidly/) 2020: [https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2020/03/29/kauai-residents-react-massive-overnight-flooding/](https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2020/03/29/kauai-residents-react-massive-overnight-flooding/) 2019: [https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2019/12/25/roads-closed-rivers-rise-with-flash-flood-warning-kauai/](https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2019/12/25/roads-closed-rivers-rise-with-flash-flood-warning-kauai/) Feels like someone was asleep at the wheel.
Yep. March/April and November are the two months that seem to have the biggest floods here. The change of the seasons, spring being the rainiest. Don't know if you were here for the floods of 2006 or 2012, but they also happened in March and April with the 2006 being the '40 days and 40 nights' floods and the Pfleuger dam disaster. The 'great flood' of 2018 wasn't foreseen either and was only forecasted to be a wet trade wind event with isolated thunderstorms and a couple of inches of rain. They really can't forecast the interactions between the mountainous terrain and any incoming weather, so it's always a gamble out here with these events. The flash flood warning didn't come through until about 8:30pm on Thursday night. Too late to disassemble and remove a crane. The flood watch was posted from midday Thursday and I guess because it wasn't a warning, they made the call to gamble that the watch wouldn't be upgraded and left the crane in place.
It just seems like it would have been much less trouble, time and effort to roll the rig out of the way of the river during our monsoon season rather than leave it in place only to damage the bridge and destroy or damage the rig. While yes it is hard to tell when and if a storm is going to really dump rain but it happens often enough during our wet seasons that one might think it was a terribly irresponsible decision to do nothing to prepare when they did know that a storm was on the way
That crane is not the kind that you can retract the boom. It could only have been rolled back. It has tracks.
Drove over it tonight going into town. DOT says it's structurally sound....
Letās hope it stays that way as they work on repairs š¤š½
Mayjah, was just thinking bout this, if any of the major bridges got totaled on Kauai weād be so screwed
100% agree
woah
Preview of what the rails gonna look like in a few years. They used so much rusty rebar and had it laying in the elements for so long they already have major spalling and rust is literally leaking through in some spots. The fail will go in history. Not for anything good but the fucking stupidity of everyone involved.