City Officials Approve Letter of No Objection for Sioux City Rail Bridge Rebuild
Written by Jennifer McLawhorn, Managing Editor
BNSF
SIOUX CITY, Iowa – After two controlled blasts of the collapsed rail bridge in August, the city council has taken steps to begin its replacement.
On August 8th, RT&S reported that BNSF Railway would be completing two controlled blasts of a collapsed rail bridge that crosses the Big Sioux River on August 16th and September 6th. The first controlled blast would take place on the South Dakota side of the river, and the second controlled blast would take place on the Iowa side.
Now, KTIV reports city leaders have begun steps to rebuild the bridge. On Tuesday night (September 3rd), the city council “approved a letter of no objection,” allowing for the advancement of replacing the bridge. As of reporting, there are no solidified final plans, but there are two options. The proposed reconstruction plan approval came from the City of North Sioux City (the Levee Sponsor) “as long as the contractor follows all the requirements from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.”
Jon Brown of Stockwell Engineers said, “Ultimately, when it’s all said and done, they will be required to make sure that doesn’t impede the flow of the river, and that’s important to us so that it can maintain the capacity of our river.”
