Cargo Barge Strikes Tacony Palmyra Bridge, Causes Bridge To Be Closed
by Alex Lloyd Gross
A cargo barge escorted by at least two tug boats hit the Tacony Palmyra Bridge shortly before 3:00 PM today. The bridge is a draw bridge, from those people that might not be aware. For larger vessels, it must be opened. When the rear end of the barge hit the bridge, it caused the mechanism to malfunction and stay in the upright position.
This caused traffic to become congested on surface streets neat the bridge , in Palmyra and in Philly. There are a lot of businesses near the Tacony in Palmyra and people had a hard time getting to them. Add in a storm that brought tornadoes to South Jersey and Delaware and traffic was at a standstill in some places.
Shortly before 5:00 PM crews were able to lower the bridge. Now it has to be inspected, to insure that it is safe to drive on and walk on.There were no injuries. The boat was removed within 45 minutes, people familiar with the incident said. It is unknown the destination of the boat of what it was carrying.
Alex Lloyd Gross Photo-Delaware Valley News.com The bridge is stuck open.
Transportation officials will interview the captain and crew. The US Coast Guard was on scene helping the investigation.