Delaware Will Inspect State’s Major Bridges After I-495 Closure

Delaware’s transportation secretary ordered an immediate inspection of major bridges on Thursday, days after an I-495 bridge was shuttered because of tilting support columns.

DelDOT Secretary Shailen Bhatt said that his agency will begin by inspecting bridges of similar design for the same problem and then extend the review to every major bridge in the state, the Associated Press reports.

The state shut down the I-495 bridge on Monday and believe that a large mound of dirt dumped in the area under the bridge may have the shifted the ground and caused the columns to tilt. The agency will be looking to make sure that the area under the state’s bridges is clearly marked to avoid similar pilings of dirt.

“I want eyes on all those bridges immediately,” Bhatt told the AP. “We’ve literally got folks going out today.”

[AP]