So somebody blew up the bridge on 270?!?!?
— Jared Ingram (@TrackkAddict) February 3, 2015
After dealing with a botched implosion on Tuesday morning that caused unexpected eastbound chaos for the ensuing evening peak and an subsequent emergency closure this morning to finish the job, the second phase of the old I-270 canal bridge implosion is complete. That video was shot from a spectator. Look at the right side of the video where the explosives did not detonate, the left part almost did not come down. This was obviously top story in the local news that evening, and the contractor involved is now on the hook for the second implosion and subsequent repairs. The evening peak ended up going to hell with average drive times going over 1 hour for this section of 270, and viewers did not hesitate to vent their frustration:
270 heading into ill sucks right now. — M I K E (@MikeReynolds42) February 3, 2015
https://twitter.com/StlCrdsfn11/status/562741894082744322
I thought that the chain of rocks bridge was supposed to reopen at noon? Guess not. #3hourslater
— Becky (@becky_stock) February 3, 2015
UPDATE: Easily over an hour delay on Eastbound 270 to IL Rte 3. Bumper to bumper before Washington #ontimestl pic.twitter.com/3hjsl1388g — On Time Traffic (@ontimestl) February 3, 2015
To make matters worse, this did not go without other incidents that simply complicated matters:
That incident blocked the mainline lanes for a short time and takes an hour to clear.
Accident in #Alton on US 67 NB near Clark Brg #STLtraffic http://t.co/fMVBuY1YqE — TTN St. Louis (@TotalTrafficSTL) February 4, 2015
This one had to occur on a key alternate route that had a heavier than normal traffic day due to the chaos on 270.
can’t see the incident from this shot but it is just past that curve by the Riverview exit
There was one other incident that took place while the full closures were in place but it was not blocking the mainline lanes at the Riverview exit around 11:30.
Well, the next morning comes and the morning peak does not come without incident either:
270 w on IL side before the canal bridge slow going @StLouisTraffic
— jackie harrison (@luvreading01) February 4, 2015
Left lane blocked by a crash WB Hwy 270 at Route 3 is jamming traffic back thru Route 111… — Rodger Brand (@rbrandtraffic) February 4, 2015
It was either a combination of the full moon that was happening or people taking a look of the sudden change of scenery brought on by the implosion. This incident is cleared in 40 minutes but takes an hour for traffic to return to normal.
The second blast happened at 10:00 Wednesday and goes smoothly:
Crews blast Chain of Rocks Canal Bridge for 2nd time to remove debris #STL https://t.co/u7O7DPHUVf
— FOX2now (@FOX2now) February 4, 2015
Flames rise from Chain of Rocks Canal Bridge truss as crews blast for 2nd time #STL pic.twitter.com/9sRJTHYoFK — FOX2now (@FOX2now) February 4, 2015
But there was another incident at Route 367 while the closure was still in effect:
This incident blocked the right lane at the MoDOT work zone and backed up traffic to W. Florissant. This incident would remain active for 45 minutes before it was cleared.
Also this event brought some karma to Cornbread:
Chain of Rocks/I-270 