The Demerara Harbour Bridge (DHB) will be closed to vehicular traffic from 10 o clock  on Wednesday night up to 4 am on Thursday, to facilitate repairs after a vessel collided with the bridge, causing damage.

Currently the structure is closed to marine traffic and is expected to resume contractions for river vessels on Thursday.

General Manager of the Bridge, Rawlston Adams at a press conference today, reported that the incident occurred on Sunday at about 5:15 am with an internationally registered fuel tanker owned by Pritchard-Gordon tankers of the United Kingdom. According to Adams, the captain of the vessel, a local, was given clearance to transit at 5:15 am however it was observed that the vessel was approaching in an unorthodox position.

“After that was noticed, instructions were then given to the pilot again … the response from the pilot was ‘I know what I am doing,’ ” Adams revealed. Subsequently, after the pilot’s failure to observe instructions, the vessel struck the bridge, causing damage that is considered significant.

Inspections have thus far shown damage to two cluster piles, the pontoon and transom. The bridge was also slightly re-positioned following the mishap, however that was corrected several hours after and vehicular traffic resumed.

“We expect that the owners of the vessel would bear all the costs. I have had an initial discussion and they have made a commitment that once we do a joint inspection and we assess the cost, they have given a commitment that they will stand the cost for the repairs,” Adams stated.

Engineers are currently engaged in mobilizing the necessary materials to facilitate a speedy repair process.

“We had fabricated those components a long time ago in the event of such. We are confident we have the necessary resources to fix and restore the bridge to proper order,” added Adams.

(GINA)

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