Mackinaw Road bridge over I-75 in Bay County, Mich., which is not slated for reconstruction until 2019, is closed due to a collapse in the pavement.
Early Sunday morning, pavement on the already crumbling bridge fell through, creating a 5x4-ft hole.
The Bay County Road Commission is currently working to close both ends of the bridge off since it is in no condition to support traffic. According to the commission, the pavement fell through directly over the median on I-75, so no driver was injured in the incident.
According to communications representatives from the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT), the age of the bridge and weather conditions were probably the two biggest contributors to the collapse.
MDOT's latest maintenance bridge report listed the bridge as structurally deficient back in March of 2015, which MDOT says is because of the bridge deck. They said this particular deck is inspected every 12 months, even though a typical inspection occurs every two years.
MDOT said they have taken extra precautions necessary to ensure safe travel for drivers, since crews have installed false-deck patching underneath areas of the bridge that covers live traffic on I-75, which would catch any portion of the collapsing deck that sits above motorists on the interstate.
The bridge will remain closed for up to two weeks to undergo maintenance repair. Currently, MDOT has no plans to move the bridge reconstruction date up.
