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Last updated on Tuesday, November 8, 2016
(PAOLI) - Crews will begin work to repair the iron bridge that crosses Lick Creek in Paoli.
Repair work on the bridge will begin in a few weeks.
The bridge partially collapsed on December 25 when police say a semi driver drove onto it with a load weighing nearly six times the posted limit.
The 1850s bridge is a Select Structure on the National Register of Historic Places and replacing it with a modern bridge could have jeopardized future federal transportation funding for Orange county.
CLR Inc. will make the repairs for an estimated $748,875. The trucking company's insurance carrier, Progressive, will pay for the repairs. The contract requires that CLR Inc. complete the work within 270 days.
The insurance company said they will not pay the cost of repainting portions of the bridge. That cost is estimated at $39,975 and will be paid by the county.
County leaders are considering adding height clearance bars to the bridge's entrances to deter large trucks from trying to cross it.
The driver of the semi, 24-year-old Mary Lambright of Fredericksburg is facing a Class B misdemeanor charge of reckless operation of a tractor-trailer. She entered a plea of not guilty and is scheduled for a bench trial in Orange Superior Court on March 22 at 9 a.m. She was also cited for disregarding a traffic control device, the signage on the bridge with the posted weight limit, and for traveling with an overweight load on a posted bridge.
Officials say the semi, leased to Louisville Logistics, was carrying 43,000 pounds of bottled water. Police say Lambright couldn't comprehend how much six tons was - the weight limit posted on the bridge. The tractor-trailer and load weighted more than 30 tons.
After the accident the company fired Lambright and then went out of business.
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