11 Days: The I-75 Emergency Bridge Repair

In the dim moments before daybreak on February 2, 2004, a tanker truck carrying 7,400 gallons of gas and diesel fuel through a foggy section of I-75 near North Port, Florida, struck a guard rail, flipped, and exploded, killing the driver. Heat and flames enveloped the Big Slough Canal Bridge, devastating the structure and blackening 100 yards of highway. Within hours of the tragedy, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), District One, opened the highway to northbound traffic, detoured southbound traffic west to US 41, and closed the southbound lanes for emergency repairs.

Day 1: Rapid Mobilization—FDOT Senior Project Administrator of Sarasota Construction Jill N. Henshaw Guadagno was on her way to work when the call came in at 7:15 a.m. When she arrived on site at 8:00 a.m., firefighters were still extinguishing the flames along the 540-foot bridge and containing a fuel spill into Myakkahatchee Creek. “The scene was really bad. But, fortunately, we had construction crews working nearby at an adjacent site ready to help, and we began mobilizing right away.”

As the firm providing oversightconstruction engineering and inspection (CEI) services for FDOT on the I-75 widening project, KCI Technologies responded quickly. “The explosion and fire caused extensive structural damage,” explained KCI Project Manager and Florida CEI Division Chief John A. Padavich, PE. “By late morning, the bridge was still hot, smoky, and oily, and FDOT’s design engineers had a hard time getting under the deck to access the damage.” The contractor, Zep Construction stepped in to pressure wash the structure, which helped engineers identify the extent of the damage.”

At 8:01p.m., Guadagno and KCI Project Administrator Kiko Villarreal e-mailed the first of what would be daily progress reports to FDOT leaders and the emergency repair team, noting that APAC Southeast, Inc., had begun clearing and grubbing for a temporary detour through the north- and southbound median. Zep Construction President Jovan A. Zepcevski, PE, worked through the night to prepare the damaged structural members for demolition.

Days 2 & 3: Detours and Demolition—Over the next two days, Southern Waste Services began excavating contaminated soils from the site and Zep Construction removed the bridge decking and beams, while cutting and slicing the piles. APAC delivered the first of 500 truckloads of fill material—nearly 5,700 cubic yards—to build the temporary crossover through the median. The team also added 3,867 square yards of a geofabric liner to stabilize the area. Traffic Control Products, meanwhile, installed signage for the new maintenance of traffic (MOT) plans and began restriping and placing barrier walls for the detours, based on MOT drawings by the design engineer, EC Driver & Associates.

Days 4 & 5: Crossover Construction—With motorists flooding onto the 20-mile US 41 detour and traffic delays through local business districts approaching five hours, FDOT was intent on getting travelers back on the Interstate. “It was an adventure, like climbing Mount Everest,” recalled Zepcevski in an FDOT interview. “Only the measure of success wasn’t the height, it was the shortest time possible to accomplish the task.”

Nearly one-third of the entire bridge needed to be demolished and rebuilt, including three piles, 15 beams supporting the deck, three bridge deck panels, and new barrier walls. Simultaneously, crews scrambled to finish the crossover detour, reducing northbound traffic from two lanes to one to accommodate the new traffic pattern. With the help of an early morning rain that cooled the fresh asphalt, a southbound lane opened to motorists at 7:50 a.m. on February 6th.

Days 6 & 7: Deck Construction—The emergency repair team worked around the clock during the weekend of February 7-8, setting beams and placing steel and concreteforms for the bridge deck. In monitoring the CEI services performed by the design-build contractor, KCI inspectors served as FDOT’s eyes and ears. “Everyone worked together. The coordination was unbelievable,” said Guadagno. “Judy Rice kept excellent records, providing minute by minute accounts of who was on site and what was happening. Joey Davis and Steve (Rogers, an inspector with KCI subconsultant, Volkert, Inc.) tracked the quantities of materials. It was intense. Nobody left till the job was done.”

Guadagno—who FDOT District One recognized as Employee of the Month—slept on site in a trailer, as did Zep Construction President Zepcevski, who rested, when possible, in his car.

“ The camaraderie made the effort successful,” explained KCI’s Padavich. “Everyone—FDOT, contractors, designers, inspectors—pulled together. Our people stayed out there, too, sleeping in nearby hotels to make sure we were available.”

Days 8 & 9: Concrete Deck Placement—On Monday, February 9th, one week after the accident, bridge repairs were well under way, with daily, 9:00 a.m. meetings keeping everyone abreast of task assignments. “We asked a lot of questions at the morning meetings, probing for specific data, which helped keep people on track,” explained KCI Project Administrator Kiko Villarreal. Shortly after the meeting at 10:54 a.m., crews began placing concrete for the bridge deck, finishing at 2:45 p.m. On Tuesday, workers set barrier walls, placed and tied reinforcing steel for the bridge rail, spread embankment material in excavated areas, and added striping for the southbound traffic realignment.

Days 10 & 11: Mission Accomplished—FDOT reopened one lane of southbound I-75 on Wednesday, February 11th, at 8:50 p.m. and a second lane on Thursday at 5:00 a.m. Hours later at 12:10 p.m., crews completed the final MOT patterns for reopening the northbound lane, which had been accommodating southbound traffic. After setting 15 bridge beams, laying 1,530 tons of asphalt, and moving almost 15,500 linear feet of barrier wall, the bridge was operational. Workers had expended 6,350 hours in a record 11 days to restore the structure. In comparison, it took 18 days to reopen nearby Salt Creek Bridge when it was similarly damaged in 1996.

On February 13th, FDOT District One Secretary Ricky A. Langley, PE, e-mailed KCI Project Administrator Kiko Villarreal, thanking KCI for its efforts. “I wanted to let you know what a great job you did in preparing the updates…(which) were brief but full of information, just as they should be. A few were actually forwarded to Governor Bush.” Langley added, “I also want to thank everyone else for their dedication and efforts during this crisis. What an incredible accomplishment!”

The following week, KCI met with representatives from FDOT District Seven to share lessons learned from the project. Then on April 14th, Secretary Langley presented KCI with a certificate of appreciation at the District One Quarterly Contractor’s Meeting. The certificate recognized the inspectors’ “extraordinary efforts and dedication to the expeditious repair of the I-75 Big Slough Bridge. Their outstanding commitment and prompt action contributed to the phenomenal 11 day success of this project.”

KCI inspectors are still working nearby, providing oversight CEI services for FDOT, as crews replace five bridge decks and widen 3.9 miles of I-75 in Sarasota County. “We work closely with the contractor’s inspectors from Allied Engineering & Testing, Inc., monitoring instrument calibrations and performing split testing of some materials,” explained KCI Tampa Engineering Division Chief and Vice President Darryl J. Kroeze, PE. In retrospect, Kroeze notes, “KCI employees just feel fortunate to have been able to help during the crisis. We worked as a team with very talented people and turned around a devastating situation quickly and efficiently.”

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