Back in business: A section of McEwen Rd has reopened following repairs. Photo: Supplied
McEwen Rd in Wyuna has reopened after refurbishment to a significant section of the road.
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In January, Goulburn-Murray Water shut the stretch between Murray Valley Hwy and McBain Rd due to heavy rain damage.
The repairs focused on a bridge over Wyuna Main Drain, as its supports were damaged by the storm.
Fixing the bridge required engineers to take off the bridge deck, a complex and technical task.
“The bridge is made up of 22 pre-stressed concrete beams and removing the bridge deck would normally involve each beam being individually detached and pulled apart,” Goulburn-Murray Water senior civil engineer Jake Chessells said.
“Instead, we devised a method to remove the bridge deck that involved designing and fabricating two large steel beams that we placed under the bridge decks and then lifted them out in two pieces.”
Engineering feat: A section of the bridge that was lifted out by the steel beams. Photo: Supplied
This method saved time, with the bridge being removed, repaired and reinstated using the two fabricated steel beams. G-MW were happy with the result and will use this approach in the future.
They thanked the community for their assistance with the repairs.
“The approach we took with the fabricated steel beams saved us approximately a week when removing the bridge and another week when reinstating it,” Mr Chessells said.
“Quite a few of the bridges G-MW is responsible for maintaining are similar in their design, so it is certainly a method we will be able to reuse in the future.”
“We appreciate people’s cooperation and patience during these works.”
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