Overview
- Explosives brought down the center span at about 11:10 a.m. after a delay, with an eastern section slated for later in the day and the western portion to be dismantled later because it sits over homes and a rail line.
- Officials enforced 850-foot land and 1,000-foot river safety zones, sounded warning horns, suspended train traffic for roughly four hours, and urged the public to watch online.
- Crews will cut the fallen trusses into smaller pieces, lift them with cranes onto barges, and ship the steel to a salvage business in Wisconsin.
- The crossing has been closed since October; it was the only bridge for about 30 miles and carried roughly 2,100 vehicles daily, with ferry service set to resume Monday, Dec. 22.
- Residents gathered to witness the demolition, local groups plan tributes and keepsakes from salvaged material, and construction on the replacement continues toward a 2027 opening.