Community Bulletin
A run of power outages across central West Virginia in recent months has homeowners weighing backup options. Crites Electric, a Buckhannon Generac dealer of more than 45 years, installs automatic standby generators that restore power within seconds — no cords, no switches. Read more →
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CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Travelers can expect a long-term lane closure on the Silver Memorial Bridge in Mason County while parts are manufactured to replace an expansion joint.
Built in 1969 to replace the original Silver Bridge, the 1,964-foot Silver Memorial Bridge carries U.S. 35 across the Ohio River between Henderson, West Virginia and Gallipolis, Ohio. The bridge carries about 22,230 cars a day and about 6,000 trucks.
The slow lane coming from Ohio is currently closed on the bridge following failure of an expansion joint.
West Virginia Division of Highways District 1 bridge crews have been making makeshift repairs to the expansion joint for some time, but several teeth broke out in early July. The failure will require replacement of the entire expansion joint.
The expansion joint manufacturer will have to fabricate a brand-new expansion joint. The process of ordering, manufacturing and receiving the new expansion joint could take nine months or more.
The original Silver Bridge, built in 1928, collapsed Friday, December 15, 1967, killing 46 people.
