Outdated Disraeli Bridge rail not unsafe: city

Posted: 3:07 PM CST Thursday, Jan. 19, 2012 Last Modified: 5:36 PM CST Thursday, Jan. 19, 2012 | Updates

City of Winnipeg officials say the guard rail on the Disraeli Bridge is not unsafe, despite the fact that it does not meet modern-day standards.

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City of Winnipeg officials say the guard rail on the Disraeli Bridge is not unsafe, despite the fact that it does not meet modern-day standards.

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 19/01/2012 (5010 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

City of Winnipeg officials say the guard rail on the Disraeli Bridge is not unsafe, despite the fact that it does not meet modern-day standards.

Public works director Brad Sacher said the steel guard rail on the bridge has performed well since it was built in the 1960s. Sacher said the rail was designed “to the standards of the day” and bridge railings now use concrete barriers.

Sacher said Disraeli Bridge is one of two bridges in the city with this sort of steel guard rail, next to the Osborne Bridge.

Wayne Glowacki / Winnipeg Free Press
Construction workers use their crane to raise an overturned vehicle that crashed through a railing on the Disraeli Bridge. — Wayne Glowacki / Winnipeg Free Press Construction workers use their crane to raise an overturned vehicle that crashed through a railing on the Disraeli Bridge.

He said the railing was inspected as recently as Dec. 20 and was deemed safe.

“The fact that it doesn’t meet current standards doesn’t mean it’s unsafe,” Sacher said.

Sacher said the bridge and its railing are regularly inspected. He said the SUV involved in Wednesday’s crash hit the railing very hard. He declined to speculate whether the tragic accident would have occurred on a city bridge with guard rails that meet current standards.

The crash occurred around 2:30 p.m. Wednesday when police said an SUV travelling southbound on the bridge lost control, struck another vehicle and crashed through a protective guard rail. The vehicle fell 45 feet to the riverbank below.

After the crash, witnesses peered over the edge and watched as construction workers with PCL, who were working on the ongoing overhaul of the bridge, approached the wreckage and tried in silence to assist the victim.

Within minutes, dozens of rescue vehicles converged on nearby Talbot Avenue, near a path to the riverbank. After labouring for about 40 minutes and using the Jaws of Life, firefighters and paramedics were able to extricate the woman from the vehicle.

The crash sent a 19-year-old woman, the lone occupant of the SUV, to hospital, where she was later declared dead. Police have not identified the woman, but a Facebook memorial has been set up in honour of Kaitlyn Fraser.