US-90 BRIDGE OVER THE ATCHAFALAYA RIVER INSPECTION

The US-90 Bridge over the Atchafalaya River connects Morgan City and Berwick in Louisiana.  The bridge is a 1,839 foot long cantilever through truss bridge with a 617 foot long main span.  The bridge was built in 1975 to replace the previous US 90 bridge, the parallel Long-Allen Bridge.  The Long-Allen bridge was built in 1933 with three main K Truss spans, each over 600 feet in length and now carries LA 182 between the two cities.

Inspection of the US-90 bridge required a team of 4 and rope access.  Rappelling and ascending truss members was performed using static rope, an ID, shunt back-up (allowed back then), and an ascender with foot strap.  The sway bracing was belayed using Grigris and dynamic rope.