Jul 7, 2015 2 min read

The removal of scrap steel in the Monongahela River from last week’s implosion of the Donora-Webster Bridge is no longer impeding navigation in the area, the state Department of Transportation said.

The crane operators on barges used by the salvage company to remove the steel are given advance warning when tow boats and barges are approaching in order for them to move the equipment out of the navigation channel, PennDOT spokeswoman Valerie Petersen said Tuesday.

“That’s not a problem with the U.S. Coast Guard,” Petersen said. “The steel on the bank is not blocking traffic.”

The contractor, Beech Construction of Carnegie, missed the 24-hour federal deadline Thursday to reopen the river to traffic a day after the deteriorating 107-year-old bridge was imploded. The company was met with a heavy overnight fog as it worked to cut up the main span and move its pieces to the side of the Mon in Webster.

It was not immediately known if Beech would be fined by the Coast Guard for missing the deadline, Petersen said.

“As of right now there is no navigational challenge,” she said. “Traffic has precedence.” The company has until the end of August to complete the bridge demolition. No date has been set for the implosion of two piers remaining in the river, Petersen said.