Date:
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Contact:
Contact: Joe Irwin, Hood Canal Bridge Communications, 253-305-6412
Theresa Gren, Hood Canal Bridge Communications, 253-305-6428
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 21, 2008
IR08-21
TACOMA – It was a cold, dark morning Feb. 21 at Concrete Technology Corporation (CTC) in Tacoma, but those watching the third cycle of pontoons being floated out to Seattle were warmed by the feeling of a bright future for the Hood Canal Bridge Project.
“Things went very well,” said Scotty Ireland, WSDOT construction manager. “We actually completed the pontoon float-out ahead of schedule. It took approximately two hours instead of the three we had estimated.”
Four pontoons, V, X, ZC and ZD, hit the waters of the Puget Sound for the first time about 3:30 a.m. today, clearing the graving dock about 5:30 a.m. Once out of CTC they began their slow journey north to Pier 66 and Todd Pacific Shipyards in Seattle under the guidance of five Foss Tugboats.
The pontoons – basically massive, hollowed-out concrete blocks weighing thousands of tons each – are intricately designed and must work together, floating and supporting 1.5 miles of columns, girders and roadway across the canal.
Crews at CTC will now start work on the fourth and final pontoon cycle for the new Hood Canal Bridge. When cycle four is completed in August 2008, the pontoon sections will be connected then outfitted with electric and mechanical components.
Construction of 12 of the 14 new east-half pontoons is now finished, and the Hood Canal Bridge project is 69 percent complete.
The third cycle pontoon float out was done in conjunction with the ongoing Hood Canal Bridge retrofit and replacement project which will improve the existing structure between the Kitsap and Olympic peninsulas, making it safer and more reliable. The bridge will close for six weeks during May-June 2009 to allow WSDOT and contractors from Kiewit-General to remove and replace its eastern half. For more information, visit http://www.hoodcanalbridge.com/.
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