Plans for 2nd blast under review

March 19, 2013, 8:30 pm by Staff Reports

Construction workers remove part of the steel truss of the 281 bridge, which was demolished with explosives on Sunday. The removal of debris from Lake Marble Falls is expected to be complete by Friday. Click picture for more photos.

State officials said Tuesday a new plan is being drafted for a second blast to remove the concrete piers of the old US 281 bridge after Sunday’s implosion of the steel span went haywire, only partially collapsing the structure but leaving unexploded charges, disruption of 911 and other communication services, scattered damage to nearby buildings and a city sewage line, and motorists steaming in a ten-hour traffic jam.

Much of the havoc following the blast resulted when shrapnel cut a major fiber optic cable beneath a new bridge only feet away. A Texas Department of Transportation official said subcontractor Omega Demolition Inc. and Verizon, the cable owner, had agreed that the possibility of damage was believed so unlikely, it didn’t justify the difficulty of shielding the cable. 

Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) representatives had assured the public and city leaders they believed the result of the blast could be predicted with precision and chances of a mishap were "very, very remote.”

For more on this story see Wednesday's Llano County Journal or Burnet Bulletin, or Friday's Highlander.