Posted: Friday, September 23, 2016. 1:11 p.m. CST.
By BBN Staff: Breaking Belize News has received reliable reports that an inspection was done today by engineers from the Ministry of Works and that the Hawkesworth Bridge in San Ignacio is showing signs of wear and tear from heavy use, particularly by heavy duty trucks and equipment, since Hurricane Earl. Some reports even indicate that there is a slight fault in one of the supporting structures of the bridge.
As a result of the damages, traffic across the bridge is being monitored closely. Smaller vehicles, for example, are not allowed to cross along with heavily laden trucks and other heavy duty equipment. However, generally the flow of traffic remains constant as shown in exclusive photos taken by BBN today.
Personnel from the Ministry of Works are currently on site and repairs to the Hawkesworth Bridge are to occur mostly in the night after 9:00 o’clock.
The Hawkesworth Bridge in San Ignacio was built in 1949. It has no doubt served the twin towns of San Ignacio and Santa Elena for a long time and continues to be the main way of crossing from one town to the next.
The low lying wooden bridge which was damaged by the floods in the aftermath of Hurricane Earl is also being repaired and work is advancing swiftly. The local contractor indicates that, in another 2 weeks, work on the wooden bridge will be completed and this will significantly reduce the pressure that the Hawkesworth Bridge is currently under.
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