Second accident in four days closes Laughlin bridge

** I know this has ben posted earlier, but this is from a different newspaper with a couple different photos.**


By James Chilton, Kingman Daily Miner Staff Reporter

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]Friday, May 30, 2008[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]KINGMAN - The Laughlin Bridge was closed to traffic for approximately 11 hours through Wednesday evening after a semi-tractor trailer ran the red light at the intersection of Nevada Route 163 and Casino Drive, causing a four-car accident that left five injured.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]State Trooper Kevin Honea with the Nevada State Highway Patrol said the accident occurred around 2:50 p.m. when the semi, approaching the bridge from the Nevada side along Route 163, hit a Chevy Silverado that had been making a left turn from the Arizona side onto Casino Drive. [/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]The collision pushed the Silverado into two other vehicles, while the semi proceeded eastbound off the road and down an embankment into the river, taking a section of fence with it.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif][FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]"We're not sure at this point whether it was brake failure or whether he just ran the red light," Honea said.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]Of the five injured, two were treated and released while two more were admitted to [/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]Western Arizona Regional Medical Center in Bullhead City. The driver of the semi was admitted to WARMC then later transported to Sunrise Medical Center in Las Vegas. None of the injuries sustained by any of the parties were life-threatening, Honea said. [/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]Any charges that could be levied against the driver of the semi are pending the outcome of the police investigation. [/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]The semi also spilled a small amount of fuel into the river, estimated at between 50 and 60 gallons, which was quickly contained by members of the Bullhead City Fire Department. [/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]Traffic approaching from both sides of the river was rerouted to the Veterans Memorial Bridge adjacent to the Avi Resort and Casino several miles to the south.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]Wednesday's accident was the second along the Laughlin Bridge in just four days. The bridge was closed for 13 hours through Saturday night after a diesel tanker experienced brake failure as it was approaching the bridge from the Nevada side at around 8 p.m. [/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Times New Roman, Times, Serif]The resulting accident involved six other vehicles, injuring four people and spilling more than 4,500 gallons of fuel onto the roadway.[/FONT]





A section of fence clings to the tractor-trailer that plummeted off the Laughlin side of the Colorado River Wednesday afternoon closing the bridge between Bullhead City and Laughlin for several hours.
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Friday, May 30, 2008 12:59 AM CDT

Span reopens after 11 hours; second long closure in four days tests commuters

By NEIL YOUNG/The Daily News
LAUGHLIN - After it was shut down for roughly 11 hours, authorities were finally able to reopen the Laughlin Bridge at approximately 2 a.m. Thursday, according to Emily Montague, Bullhead City police spokeswoman.

The bridge was closed Wednesday afternoon after a semi tractor-trailer car carrier, heading down Nevada Route 163, lost its brakes, ran a red light at the bridge and plunged into the Colorado River.

The accident caused no structural damage to the bridge, according to Joe Martinez, Nevada Department of Transportation assistant district engineer. “The integrity is intact,” he said.

A sidewalk and pedestrian fence took the brunt of the damage, Martinez said. “We're in the process of doing an emergency contract to institute the repairs,” which he expects will be done next week.

The trucking outfit that removed the vehicles was “really cautious in fishing out all the vehicles out of the water and not creating more damage to the bridge,” Martinez said. “It took a little longer but it was well worth it because we managed to come out without a scratch on the bridge itself.”

The semi struck three vehicles in the intersection before veering off the road and hitting the water with its load of five vehicles.

Five patients, including the truck driver, were taken to Western Arizona Regional Medical Center. At press time, Nevada Highway Patrol was unable to release the names of those injured. Due to federal law, media outlets are unable to check on the condition of accident victims without providing their names to hospital officials.

There was also little information about what might have caused the accident. “They did a commercial vehicle inspection ... when they got it up off the embankment,” said trooper Kevin Honea, Nevada Highway Patrol southern command spokesman. “The cause of the crash still remains under investigation.”

Wednesday's bridge closure was the second in four days. Saturday night, a double-tanker diesel tractor-trailer lost its brakes coming down the hill on the same highway, dumping 4,500 gallons of diesel fuel onto the roadway from the truck's ruptured tanks.

The bridge was closed for approximately 13 hours.

Why not Davis Dam?

With the cost of gas nearly $4 a gallon, some Daily News readers are wondering why the Davis Dam crossing can't be opened when the Laughlin Bridge closes down for hours at a time.

In such instances, traffic is detoured to the Veterans Bridge near the Avi Resort and Casino, requiring motorists to drive approximately 20 miles out of their way.

When the Bureau of Reclamation closed the Davis Dam crossing several years ago due to security concerns after 9/11, they stated, “we would make access available to emergency vehicles if necessary,” but not to regular traffic, said Bob Walsh, Bureau of Reclamation external affairs officer.

He said he's not aware of any plans to revise the policy to allow all vehicles to drive over the dam during a Laughlin Bridge closure. “The reasons for closing the dam still exist,” Walsh said. “I don't see that changing anytime soon.”

- Neil Young



INTO THE DRINK: A semi tractor-trailer car carrier sits in the Colorado River Wednesday afternoon after crashing through the fencing on the Laughlin Bridge. The crash closed the bridge for 11 hours, the second such closure in four days.