BRIDGE RECONSTRUCTION
TRIUMPH on the Turkey River How Canadian Pacific executed the emergency replacement of 400 ft of bridge superstructure washed out by floodwaters in 12-and-a-half days
L
ate on the night of March 14, 2019, large chunks of ice built up near the mouth of Iowa’s Turkey River, forming ice dams in two locations and elevating water levels in the process. Unable to withstand the pressure,
12 Railway Track & Structures // May 2021
the upper ice dam broke, sending a wall of ice and water downstream towards Bridge 71.61 of Canadian Pacific’s (CP) Marquette Subdivision main line. Upon impact, five of the northernmost through-plate girder spans of Bridge 71.61 lifted off their
bearings and toppled into the river, leaving a 400-ft gap in the bridge and pulling 900 ft of track off the north approach in the process. Fast forward to March 27, after placement of 35,000 tons of rip-rap, installation rtands.com
Photo Credit: Canadian Pacific
Setting the first temporary spans, Day 8, March 22.
