Docs show what wasn’t released in Washington Bridge reports

Engineers hired by the state to find out why the westbound side of the Washington Bridge failed in 2023 concluded that the broken rods which led to the closure had been corroding for more than 15 years.

But that conclusion was omitted from the 64-page draft report that Wiss Janney Elstner Associates provided The Rhode Island Department of Transportation in April 2024, according to documents obtained by The Hummel Report.

The determination came during revised drafts of metallurgical reports between Feb. 1 and Feb. 19, 2024, in which several engineers working for WJE circulated multiple versions of their findings.

In one section, they focused on thickness of rust on the support rods that ultimately failed. A revision dated Feb. 15, concluded: “It is therefore highly likely that that the fractures occurred prior to the most recent bridge inspection six months ago, perhaps even prior to the last several inspections.”

The westbound lanes of the bridge were built in 1968.

In the margins for notes and feedback, one of the engineers responded: “Even if they weren’t corroding in the early decades of the bridge, we have inspection photos that show corrosion of the exterior perimeter of these bars has been progressing for at least 15 years. Thus, it is improbable that such thickness of corrosion product could have accumulated on the fracture faces in six months.”

The six months referred to a July 2023 inspection report – the most recent inspection of the bridge before it was shut down on Dec. 11.

‘Edit as you see fit’

At a news conference in the aftermath of the bridge closure, DOT Director Peter Alviti Jr.  said that the July report showed the rods were in “adequate, serviceable shape.” But, Alviti added, “occasionally an extraordinary event will happen. Some kind of outside force that was extraordinary, likely broke the rod holding the cantilever on Span 7.” 

The cantilever is an unbalanced beam that’s supported from one end and the connecting rod is tied into the pier to prevent the beam from moving upward.

Another WJE engineer, referring to the phrase ‘perhaps even prior to the last several inspections,’ in the earlier draft wrote: “Feel free to delete this phrase if you think it is unwarranted, or edit as you see fit.”

The final draft of the metallurgical report, dated Feb. 19, 2024 says “Based on rust layer thickness on the fracture faces, it is highly likely that the fractures occurred prior to most recent bridge inspections six months ago.” There is no inclusion of the engineers’ earlier determinations about how long ago the corrosion had occurred, and the metallurgical report was not included as an appendix to the April 2024 draft report made public last month.

The Hummel Report asked the DOT what it requested WJE to do as part of its audit, and if there were any specific parameters on what to include – or not include in the report, but Charles St. Martin, the DOT spokesperson, did not immediately respond.

‘This is a politically charges scenario’

The Hummel Report has also obtained an email exchange between some of the same engineers at WJE talking about the pressure they were getting from the Rhode Island DOT for information. At 9:55 a.m. on Jan. 22, 2024, Michael C. Brown, an associate principal at WJE, writes to Robert W. Warke, another associate principal at the company:

“Thank you for keeping me in the loop. Our client Mr. (John) Preiss has asked me to provide a daily update of progress in our investigation,” Brown wrote. Preiss is a DOT bridge inspector.

“To that end, I would like for you to also give me updates on your portion of the investigation. This could be just a short e-mail summary of items underway and completed, and any interim findings. Would an update before noon each day be reasonable?” Brown asked.

Warke responded at 10:57 a.m.: “You are very welcome. I don’t think I’ve ever had a client ask for daily updates, but I can send you one by 4 p.m. EST.”

Brown wrote back at 3:58 p.m.: “Yes. This is a politically charged scenario, and they are under significant pressure from the administration and the legislature.”

A joint session of the House and Senate oversight committees convened on Feb. 12, 2024, where lawmakers peppered Alviti with questions about what led up to the failure of the bridge; but the session left more questions than answers.

Legislative leaders say they plan to convene another joint oversight hearing next month, after the public disclosure of the WJE draft report in September that pointed a finger of blame, in part, at the state. No date has been set for that hearing.

And it’s unclear how much information it will produce, since Gov. Dan McKee and Alviti have repeatedly refused to answer specific questions about what led to the closure of the bridge since the state filed a lawsuit against 13 contractors last year.

Inspections detail problems on Washington Bridge Pier 6, but weren’t posted publicly

The Hummel Report has also obtained inspection reports of the Washington Bridge from two testing companies, AECOM and Jacobs, that detail problems specifically on Pier 6, where the broken rods were discovered.

An AECOM report dated July 22, 2020 details multiple cracks, some stretching up to 10 feet and with varying thickness, and others that had been sealed but reopened again.

The same report notes spalling – concrete chipped off or deteriorated – on one portion of the pier measuring 3 ½ inches wide, by 5 feet high by 3 inches deep.

None of the AECOM or Jacobs reports were included as part of a tranche of inspection documents the DOT posted within weeks of the bridge closure. The department had not previously posted any of the inspection reports until it started to receive requests to do so after the bridge failure.

Scuppers repeatedly noted as being in poor condition, but DOT declined fix

Some of the problems flagged by inspectors included verbatim sentences over the course of several years. For example, under the category of scuppers – which help drain water away from the bridge – a July 2020 report states: “The scupper drainage grates along both shoulders of I-195 westbound and along the north shoulder of the Gano Street Off-Ramp are fully clogged with sand and debris.”

In 2021, 2022 and 2023 the report uses the same wording, but omits Gano Street Off-Ramp.

The 2021 and 2022 reports states: “In Span #17 the drainage grate along the north shoulder is fully clogged and missing 2 bars of the drainage grate.”

In 2022, the report on scuppers says: “In Span 9 the drainage grate along the north shoulder is filled with concrete.”

The 2023 report repeats the wording of the other reports verbatim.

The DOT acknowledges in two of the years that the scuppers were not included in the inspections, adding, “The following has been retained from the previous routine inspection report,” and lists the previous year’s date.

Each year, the reports that the DOT posted rate the condition of the scuppers. In each of the four years reviewed by The Hummel Report, none of the 27 scuppers were in good shape. Three were listed in fair condition with some deterioration; 20 were listed as poor with significant deterioration that needed to be monitored; and four had severe damage, where a structural review was required.

Earlier this month, The Hummel Report obtained a 2019 email exchange between Cardi Corporation and the Rhode Island DOT and published in The Providence Journal. The emails show that Cardi – which had been repairing the westbound lanes before its contract was terminated – offered to waterproof and button up other areas it had opened

Cardi received a $14.7 million contract in 2016 to repair the bridge. The company submitted 19 bullet points for potential action in the spring of 2018, but the DOT declined Cardi’s offer to, among other things, replace scuppers and waterproof the bridge.

The Hummel Report is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that relies, in part, on donations. For more information, go to HummelReport.org. Reach Jim at Jim@HummelReport.org.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: New Washington Bridge reports show rod corrosion started decades ago