The damage after a suspicious fire on the Domain Rd overpass in November. PHOTO/FILE
The damage after a suspicious fire on the Domain Rd overpass in November. PHOTO/FILE
A suspicious fire on the bridge at Domain Rd last month has caused more than $2 million damage and contractors are preparing the site for demolition.
The initial investigation showed the fire destroyed around a five metre section of the expanded polystyrene blocks and concrete deck of embankment two, damagedsome of the concrete facing panels, the concrete deck beams and the columns of one of the Domain Road bridge B abutments.
For the past three weeks design engineers and the insurance assessors have carried out inspections of the damaged section of the Domain Road interchange and undertaken a range of tests to gain a better understanding of the extent of the damage.
The engineers looked for damage to the reinforcing steel, particularly where it has deteriorated in the heat and has caused cracking to the concrete.
Preliminary estimates put the cost of repair in excess of $2 million, however the exact figure will not be known until additional strength tests have been completed and the contractor starts dismantling damaged components later this week.
The contractors will begin preparing the site for demolition on Thursday December 18 and expect to be finished by Tuesday December 23.
The TEL team are focused on keeping the project to their target completion date, although this will be a challenge. Demolishing the damaged parts of the bridge before Christmas will allow the rebuild to start in the new year.
Despite the fire, it's business as usual for the rest of the project, with several key milestones due to be complete over the coming months, including the completion of the Parton Road bridge, the installation of the new electronic toll gantry and the putting in place of the Mangatawa interchange bridge beams over State Highway 2.
