Tuesday, August 01, 2017

Bridge & Cable, 2017 & 1978

This is the latest message from Tideland EMC:

7:00 PM EST
JUL 31 2017
Island on Mobile Generator Power

TRANSMISSION UPDATE: Mon., July 31, 7:00 PM
Cape Hatteras Electric Cooperative (CHEC) continues its execution of two simultaneous solutions to restore transmission service to Hatteras and Ocracoke Islands.

Significant progress has been made on the overhead solution and today crews have already set seven of the required 10 transmission poles. Construction work will continue this evening.

Excavation and dewatering continue at the site of the damaged underground transmission cables. Two of the three cables have been uncovered. The first was severed and has already been spliced back together. Tests on the second cable indicate that it is uncompromised. Crews are close to the third cable, but because of the complex dewatering process, conditions have been challenging. PCL Construction will continue to excavate the trench through the night.

You can read the full report, with photos, here: http://tidelandemc.com/news_flashes/14.

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As promised, here is news about the Bonner bridge from 1978:













The caption under the photo above (with a hand-written date of 4-11-1978) reads, "The bridge stopped sinking Sunday at 11 inches below horizontal."

I am not sure when the sinking first appeared but it had continued for several days. The Virginian-Pilot reported this information:

"When the Bonner Bridge was dedicated in 1964 water was only 2 feet deep under the southern end of the span. In the last 14 years, Oregon Inlet has moved south, and the water under the sagging section has deepened to 30 feet.

"Pilings that once were buried more than 20 feet in the sand now have as little as 7 inches of sand holding them in place."

The sagging span threatened to sever the electric cable carrying 34,000 volts, which the manager of Cape Hatteras Membership Electric Corp. said would cause "a hell of a mess." 

In 1978 48 new 100-foot-long pilings were driven 50 feet into the bottom of Oregon Inlet to prop up the sagging span.

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This month's Ocracoke Newsletter is a contemporary account of the December 24, 1899 wreck of the Steamship Ariosto. You can read the Newsletter here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news072117.htm

1 comment:

  1. Anonymous7:50 PM

    Superior interest in aged history of bridge spanning. Personal knowledge of account was unheard by before. Thank you shared story. I day of one wait for upcoming visit excitement unknown before. Continued heralding of divine words on behalf of non nomadic Ocracoke permanent citizenship. ....Vladimir

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