James B. Pearson of Bandon caught this detail of the damage to one of the crossbeams on Bullards Bridge, which was damaged yesterday. Eighteen of the bridge's horizontal crossbeams over the south bound lane were damaged in the accident. Contributed Photo

Less than two months after repairs to Bullards Bridge north of Bandon were completed, an oversized truck struck all the vertical girders and cross-members on the span over the Coquille River and once again caused U.S. Highway 101 traffic to be detoured.

Shortly before 1 p.m., a southbound Bandon Rental & Equipment Repair truck hauling an excavator struck the bridge. Driver Francis Stadelman, 63, of Bandon, was not injured in the crash, which damaged all 18 cross supports and bent or twisted the steel vertical supports along the span.

"The boom on the excavator wasn't down all the way and they hit every cross support on the bridge," said Jim Risley, ODOT's district operations coordinator in Coquille. "They didn't snap them but some of them are cracked pretty badly."

According to the Oregon State Police, Stadelman told troopers he thought something was wrong with the truck's axle when he saw the lowboy trailer bouncing. He pulled over on the south side of the bridge after passing through the span.

OSP has cited Stadelman for improperly securing the load on his vehicle.

Risley said an ODOT bridge crew was dispatched from Salem Monday and currently is examining the bridge to determine the extent of the damage and how long it will remain closed. Risley said he is hopeful that temporary repairs could restore some traffic on the bridge by late today or tomorrow.

Currently, no vehicles - including emergency vehicles - are being allowed to cross the bridge. Traffic is being detoured to state Highway 42 and state Highway 42S, which adds about 15 miles to the trip from Bandon to Coos Bay, while repairs are conducted. Drivers are being advised to expect delays.

"The agency has declared this incident an emergency," said ODOT Assistant District Manager Lee Sparks. "We're going to be working around the clock to expedite the repairs."

The bridge, which allows for 15 feet, 2 inches of clearance, is located two miles north of Bandon and is the primary access along the South Coast on U.S. Highway 101.

A log truck hit several beams and snapped a vertical supports on Sept. 17, 2003. ODOT closed the bridge for about four hours on Jan. 28, while a work crew from Coos Bay-based West Coast Contractors repaired temporary girders installed after the first crash.

Risley said those repairs cost approximately $420,000 but based on the extent of the current damage, the bill for these repairs could be much higher.

Risley said ODOT will bill the driver's insurance company for the repairs.

The bridge allows for a lower clearance than most, but both the September case and most recent incident appear to be due to operator error, Risley said.

"It's never happened that I can recall," Risley said. "To have it happen twice in a couple of months, that's pretty disastrous."