With just one blast, 90 years worth of history fell into Cheat Lake Thursday.
Contractors working for the state Division of Highways began the demolition process of the Ices Ferry Bridge Thursday. The boom shook the Cheat Lake area at about 10:02 a.m. Thursday as the first portion of the bridge came down. The rest of the bridge will be demolished next Wednesday.
The bridge carried motorists across Cheat Lake from 1922 until its closing in May 2011. It will give way to a new bridge scheduled to be completed before the end of the year.
Danny Johnson of Johnson Brothers Trucking says he drove over the old iron bridge dozens of times. Now, Johnson’s company is hauling the steel from the bridge to be recycled.
"I used to haul a lot of coal across this old bridge. I can’t believe I’ll haul it out of here now," Johnson said.
A crane will be used to lift the steel out of the water onto a boat that will then move the steel to the lake’s banks. The steel will be cut up and placed on trucks headed toward the Pittsburgh area for recycling.
"They’re going to cut it up and do it all; we’re just going to haul it all away," Johnson said.
Johnson said it will likely take three weeks before all the steel is removed from the lake.
Workers established a large radius for the explosion that echoed throughout the Cheat Lake area. Brayman Construction Corp. of Saxonburg, Pa., took down the bridge and building the new one.
The new bridge is expected to open by the end of the year. The replacement cost is about $12.5 million.
Dozens of residents lined the banks of the lake, hiked up to the top of hills and even went out on boats to get the best view of the demolition.
Joshua Clopeck brought his family to watch. He said he drove on the bridge in 2011 and a new structure was needed.
"It’s weird when you cross it. You look down and can see the water and it was old and rickety," he said. "I understand it needed to be improved … especially with the boats needing to get through at some point."
Justin Burns also attended the demolition. He said the bridge was a landmark, but it’s time was up.
"It’s been 15 years since I crossed it, but out with the old and in with the new," Burns said.
Video of Collapse – Uploaded by IcesFerryBridge