Moorhead Bridge closes to all traffic

Last week, state engineers informed the county that the Moorhead Bridge was unsafe for travel. On Thursday, the county made the decision that the bridge would be closed to all traffic, until further notice.

The Moorhead Bridge spans the Powder River upstream of Broadus near the Wyoming state line, and provides a vital passage for ranchers to access their cattle and land on both sides of the river. The mail route has also historically crossed the bridge, with the delivery coming up one side of the river from Broadus, and returning on the other side. Hunters use the bridge in great numbers during hunting season, often camping at the nearby Moorhead Campground, and hunting on the Custer National Forest to the west.

The closure comes as a result of unsafe conditions caused by sagging in the bridge. One of the three bridge pillars has leaned and settled into the ground below, causing the sagging of the bridge above.

According to Commissioner Lee Randall, the bridge was built in 1972; the budget to build the bridge was $75,000. A cost estimate from Great Western Engineering puts the bill to replace the bridge at its current location in the 3 to 5 million dollar range.

Last Friday, the Commissioners met with the engineering firm to discuss a temporary fix for the bridge, as well as the potential for a long-term solution. Funding for a fix was also discussed – potential funds could come from emergency federal grants allocated for this year's disastrous flooding, which is also being used to work on other projects in the county.

As of Monday, the engineering firm had not yet contacted the Commissioners about a timeline for a fix, but the Commissioners did say that any temporary fix would likely still be months away. The nature of a temporary fix was still up in the air. Ideas have been floated to pick up the bridge with a crane, then drive pillars along the settling pillar to prevent sagging. Another idea was to bring in a temporary bridge, such as the dry support bridge in use by the National Guard.

A timeline several months out provides little solace for those who need to access the other side of the river. Nearby ranchers have cattle and hayground on both sides of the river, and are now faced with limited options for access. The nearest bridge over the Powder is 40 miles downstream at Broadus. Upstream, the nearest bridge crosses the river in Wyoming, above Clear Creek, but doesn't have public access down the west side into Montana. The other option for locals – fording the river, works alright at shallow gravel crossings, when the river is down. The crossings can be few and far between, and when flows are up or conditions are poor, a person is pretty well relegated to one side or the other.

The Moorhead Bridge has not been without past troubles. Echoing Footsteps recounts the story of the original bridge, which was built "around 1913", providing access across the river to the once bustling burg of Moorhead and to ranches near and far.

In the spring of 1955 or 56 "The Moorhead bridge went down the river when a gigantic ice jam tore and twisted the bridge from its cement pillars. With creaks and groans that made the dogs in the area howl and whine, the bridge went on its splintering way..."

In its place, a swinging footbridge was built, which was used by mail driver Frank McLane for many years to deliver the mail. McLane would park a vehicle on one side of the river, then bring mail up from town on the other side, hand carrying the mail across the footbridge, then continuing on with his deliveries. On the next trip with the mail, he would reverse his route, picking up his vehicle from the other side and delivering mail down that side of the river. The mail route on the east side of the river runs as far as Arvada, Wyoming, 76 road miles miles upstream of Broadus. For current mail delivery driver Linda Kriener, the options are now more limited as the footbridge is in a miserable state of disrepair, and no longer an option.

The plan for mail delivery is that folks on the east side of the river will have access the same as before, while those on the west side will have mailboxes moved depending on their proximity to town; the mail will then come up as far as Wilson's on the west side of the river.

The Moorhead campsite is still open, though only accessible from roads to the east of the Powder. The road crew has emplaced signs from all directions noting the bridge closure, and blocked off the bridge with sufficient barriers to prevent traffic from crossing the bridge when no one is looking.

When searching for a permanent solution to the Moorhead Bridge, a major factor is location. Over the years, the county has had to emplace a large amount of rip rap rock at the base of the west end (technically north end due to the orientation) of the bridge, where the river has been trying to undercut the bank. The river's flow comes in at a steep angle on the base of the bridge, and if the bridge was replaced at the current site, the new bridge would have similar problems with undercutting. A new location, perhaps further downstream near the footbridge, may be a better answer.

Whatever the solution, it's likely to come sometime down the road. A road which is currently only accessible from one direction.