Cascade County is nearing completion of repairs to the Sheep Creek Bridge that failed an inspection in February and has been closed since.
Commissioners approved an agreement with the Montana Department of Transportation during their March 26 meeting for up to $65,000 of state funds that the 2023 Legislature made available for the maintenance of county roads and the reconstruction and repair of local roads and bridges.
The used the funds to hire a firm to engineer and design temporary repairs to make the bridge safe for traffic and pass an MDT inspection, as well as purchase the needed materials, according to the county public works department.
County working to repair damaged Sheep Creek Bridge
The damage was likely caused by overweight loads traveling over the bridge, according to county public works.
The closure has blocked several families who live beyond the bridge from being able to travel in or out and limits access to those residents by emergency personnel, according to county public works.
Payne told The Electric on March 22 that MDT had given the county the okay to proceed with repairs and that they don’t expect the repairs, which will be done April 1-5 to exceed $65,000.
The county received materials and loaded equipment on March 27 and started repairs on April 1, when the first span girders, decking, blocking and brackets were removed and replaced.
On April 2, the second span’s blocking, brackets and decking were removed and replaced.
On April 3, the third span’s blocking, brackets, some girders and decking were removed and replaced.
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On April 4, crews finished installing some decking, cleaned up the area, removed unused equipment and set concrete barriers in front of the bridge, according to the county.
On April 5, Payne and the engineer met onsite to address guardrails and on April 8, the county installed the guardrails.
Once that is completed, inspectors will check their work, according to public works.
Payne said there are 13 different parcels used beyond the bridge, but most are used as weekend and vacation properties.
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He said the county is aware of at least one elderly couple who lives beyond the bridge year-round.
Payne said it turns to private property at the south end of the bridge, but the bridge is their only access in and out of their properties.
On Feb. 23, the county closed the bridge, south of Tower Rock State Park, after being notified by MDT that the bridge had failed an MDT inspection. During this inspection, inspectors found two girders had failed and were unable to carry load, creating a high risk of overloading the third girder and causing a chain of failures that could cause a larger collapse of the entire structure, according to public works.
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Shortly after the bridge was closed, Public Works Director Les Payne was contacted by multiple landowners asking about the bridge closure and received about six names and phone numbers of property owners in the area affected by the closure. Payne began trying to contact them regarding the closure, according to public works.
Cascade County Sheriff’s deputies were sent to the area on Feb. 24 to place fliers on structures and contact property owners about the bridge closure, according to the county.
On Feb. 26, Payne went to the site and saw that the bridge, which was rated for five tons, had overweight traffic either by vehicle or equipment that could have caused the girders to fail. He continued contacting area property owners about the bridge closure, according to the county.
County public works worked with MDT and a local engineering firm to find a temporary fix or repair the bridge to get it reopened, or install a temporary bridge so the public could safety cross the creek, according to Payne.
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On March 1, Payne and TD&H engineers met onsite to inspect the bridge and on March 5, public works signed a contract with TD&H to design and help coordinate repairs, and load test the bridge once the repairs are completed.
Payne, the county road superintendent and TD&H to determine if any materials in the county yard could be used for the temporary repairs.
By March 15, TD&H engineers sent the final repair designs to the county and MDT.
According to county public works, MDT inspected the bridge, which passed in January 2023. MDT inspectors noted that the bridge “would be at high risk of being closed down in the future due to the poor shape it was in.”
Payne said that was a regularly scheduled inspection.
In November 2023, MDT approached county public works about using the state funds for a complete replacement of the bridge, according to public works.
At that time, the county agreed that if funding was available they’d use it to replace the bridge.
When the bridge failed, Payne said the county wasn’t aware of funds available for just repairs, so he said he and commissioners decided to move forward with repair costs coming out of the public works road budget, but in March, MDT said they could use the state funding for repairs as well as total bridge replacement.
