Emails Suggest Washington Bridge Failure Previously Existed: Report

RHODE ISLAND — The flaw that caused the Washington Bridge to suffer a "critical failure" might have previously existed, according to internal Rhode Island Department of Transportation emails that were obtained by The Boston Globe.

On Dec. 8, one week before the bridge was abruptly closed down, an engineer with a private firm working on its repairs sent a series of photos and notes explaining that multiple rods that were part of the bridge's original construction were fully exposed and failing, the outlet reported, citing the emails.

In response, RIDOT deputy chief engineer Keith Gaulin said that he believed the issue "pre-existed but was not noticeable until now as this area is more exposed due to current construction work," according to the outlet.

"Based on our phone conversation, it seems there are no immediate actions to be taken right at this moment as we try to determine other short and long-term solutions," Gaulin continued, as reported by The Boston Globe.

By the following Tuesday, however, the state had shut down the entire westbound bridge. It remains closed to this day.

Any specific correspondence between Gaulin and the engineer — or any other officials — that might have led to the sudden closure is not known by the emails, according to the Globe.

"When the finding was made, RIDOT engaged its own bridge engineering staff to assess the situation and make a recommendation," Charles St. Martin, a spokesperson for the department, told the Globe of the events of that weekend. "The staff worked through the weekend to determine the extent of the damage. They reported back to the director on Monday and then he notified the governor."

Read the full report in The Boston Globe.

Peter Alviti, Jr., the director of the Rhode Island Department of Transportation, said in multiple news conferences in December that the rods were not broken when the bridge was last inspected in July.

Within days of the closure, a 500-seat ferry and temporary bypass lanes were launched to help the more than 90,000 drivers in limbo — though serious traffic issues persist and the bridge could be closed for as long as a few more months, officials recently said.

Governor Dan McKee has said that fixing the bridge is the "top priority in the state of Rhode Island right now."