The section of the unfinished Berbice River Bridge that the pontoon, MB Sandaka slammed into when the vessel became entangled in weeds would have to be replaced, Stabroek News was told.
Reports are that the span was shifted out of alignment by 30 degrees and additional work to have the span replaced would take about three to four days.
Speaking to this newspaper, an official at the bridge who did not wish to be named said that that was not the first time the bridge was hit and that a boat working for the bridge had also collided with a section.
Stabroek News attempted to elicit a comment from officials at the site office at Rosignol but was referred to the Berbice Bridge Company Inc. (BBCI) in Georgetown. Efforts made to contact that office also proved futile.
The vegetation that was caught in the propeller of the pontoon had been cleared from the Canje Creek and floats downstream. Fishermen complained that they too have been affected and had called on the Region Six officials to dispose of the grass differently.
But Regional Chairman, Zulfikar Mustapha had said that the vegetation is heavy and there is no parapet for it to be thrown. The chairman had said that using a pontoon to take the weed away would have been one option but apart from it being costly the exercise would be too tedious.
The construction of the spans had ceased for about three weeks due to “equipment failure” and only recommenced on Wednesday with the installation of the high span.
According to the source “a tug and a boat that are used to push the pontoon around had broken down and we were unable to work.” He quickly pointed out though that even if the boats were working, they still would not have been able to accomplish much because of the inclement weather.
The high span – said to be over one month behind schedule – would add to the 14 spans that have so far been installed. After that part is completed the construction of the retractor span would begin.
During a media tour to the site when the first span was installed, chairman of the BBCI, Geeta Singh-Knight said the company will hand over the bridge – slated to be the sixth longest floating bridge in the world at 1,570.719 metres – to the Government in 21 years.
The average toll for a vehicle will be around $1,000 but no charge will be levied for passengers. Vehicles will be weighed to ensure that weight restrictions are enforced.
Unlike the Demerara Harbour Bridge which is said to the fourth longest floating bridge, there will be no walkway for pedestrians. It is still unclear whether pedal cyclists will be allowed to use the bridge. The bridge will be shorter than the Demerara Harbour Bridge and the width will be the same, about 22 feet.
The surface of the bridge is coated with an epoxy resin and then overlaid with calcined bauxite, making the bridge virtually skid free.
It will be located downstream of the existing ferry route, starting from the village of D’ Edward on the western bank to Crab Island on the eastern bank where the width of the crossing is 1.5 kilometres. Sections for the bridge are being assembled at the Rosignol location.
Dredging of the western side is substantially complete and completion of a generator building at D’Edward and installation of primary power by the Guyana Power and Light is in progress. Singh-Knight had also said that the preliminary designs for the toll plaza, operation and maintenance building and public facilities have also been completed.
