WAINIHA — The rains that had been pelting the North Shore for most of the day Tuesday let up as workmen from Hawaiian Dredging started their work on installing an acrow panel bridge over the deteriorating wooden bridge over the
WAINIHA — The rains that had been pelting the North Shore for most of the day Tuesday let up as workmen from Hawaiian Dredging started their work on installing an acrow panel bridge over the deteriorating wooden bridge over the Wainiha River.
A bridge inspector from the state Department of Transportation Highways Division explained that the work Tuesday night involved digging the foundation for the new bridge on either side of the existing bridge. That dig will extend to about 25 feet from the end of the bridge, and will go to a depth of about four feet.
This meant that vehicular traffic across the bridge would not be possible during the Tuesday-night work. However, utilizing two vans to shuttle people, pedestrian traffic was allowed once they worked their way safely around the construction.
While backhoes began their excavation, other crewmen on a road between the bridges began the job of assembling the pieces of the bridge.
“It’s kind of like a giant tinker toy,” the inspector said.
The bridge had to be barged in from the Mainland, he explained.
A 24-hour closure of the bridge was slated from 6 a.m. today, Thursday, Oct. 28 to 6 a.m. Friday, Oct. 29, to facilitate completion and installation of the foundation and bridge. Special re-bar cages were created for this purpose, and a non-stick epoxy will be poured into the foundation.
“This is real high-tech stuff,” the inspector pointed out. “Once the bridge is completed, it’ll be plenty strong.”
While the work is going on, DOT Highways Division officials have made provisions to take care of the people on the Ha‘ena side, the inspector noted. Through special arrangements with the Kaua‘i Police Department, the Kaua‘i Fire Department, and American Medical Response (AMR), personnel and vehicles have been stationed on the Ha‘ena side in the unlikely event that an emergency situation should occur while the road closures are in effect.
Minute details even address environmental concerns, the engineer said, pointing out that the lighting used to illuminate the construction site will have minimal effect on the Newall’s Shearwater that is currently in their nesting season.
Traffic to and from the Wainiha area is stopped at the end of the straight-away of Kuhio Highway leading up to the curve bringing people to Wainiha. This allows for ample parking and visibility for the stop station, where people needing to traverse the Wainiha bridge on foot to board a shuttle van that takes them to the bridge.
The inspector pointed out that Tuesday night’s work did not necessitate the use of a boat that was available to get people across the stream. “They can walk across,” he pointed out. If the bridge needs to be closed totally to all public traffic, the boat will be used to get people across the river.
The new bridge is expected to be laid out just an inch-and-a-half above the existing bridge, the inspector noted, and is only a temporary measure until the final plans for the Wainiha bridges are approved. The approval process involves a lot of steps, and could take several years. If everything goes according to plan, the new bridge should be ready by 6 a.m. Friday, the engineer said.
“It’s a big job, and we don’t have time, so we need a lot of people.” Public-school students who live on the Ha‘ena side of the bridge and attending either Hanalei elementary, Kapa‘a Middle or Kapa‘a High School have today off from school, because no bus service will be available, said state Department of Education Kaua‘i District Superintendent Daniel Hamada.
Parents had the opportunity to make alternate arrangements to get their children to school if they wished, he said.
Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, call at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@pulitzer.net.
