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US 281 Niobrara River Bridge

Holt County, Nebraska, and Boyd County, Nebraska

Photo 

Bridge washout on US 281

Note headlights of state patrol cars on other side of washed-out bridge.

TV station KDLT

View this photo at kdlt.com

BH Photo #444741

Map 

Description 

This ordinary modern bridge has been in the headlines, because it has been washed out by the 2019 spring flooding, after the upstream Spencer Dam failed. According to Google Maps, a replacement bridge is scheduled to be opened in September 2019.

Facts 

Overview
Lost Steel stringer bridge over Niobrara River on US 281
Location
Holt County, Nebraska, and Boyd County, Nebraska
Status
Destroyed by flooding
Future prospects
Projected to be replaced by September, 2019
History
Opened 2003; washed out by flood March 14, 2019
Design
Steel stringer
Dimensions
Length of largest span: 250.0 ft.
Total length: 662.1 ft.
Deck width: 44.0 ft.
Approximate latitude, longitude
+42.80734, -98.65090   (decimal degrees)
42°48'26" N, 98°39'03" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates
14/528543/4739479 (zone/easting/northing)
Average daily traffic (as of 2012)
1,300
Inventory number
BH 84680 (Bridgehunter.com ID)
Inspection report (as of March 2015)
Overall condition: Good
Superstructure condition rating: Very Good (8 out of 9)
Substructure condition rating: Very Good (8 out of 9)
Deck condition rating: Good (7 out of 9)
Sufficiency rating: 78 (out of 100)
View more at BridgeReports.com

Categories 

Beam (13,683)
Boyd County, Nebraska (27)
Built 2003 (57)
Built during 2000s (594)
County line crossing (495)
Destroyed by flood (391)
Holt County, Nebraska (5)
Lost (20,975)
 Lost 2019 (18)
Lost during 2010s (2,457)
Modern (2,051)
Nebraska (1,427)
Owned by state (14,672)
Span length 250-500 feet (1,100)
Steel stringer (5,390)
Total length 500-1000 feet (2,625)

Update Log 

  • March 17, 2019: Updated by Roger Deschner: Destroyed by flooding

Sources 

  • Roger Deschner - rogerdeschner [at] gmail [dot] com
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Comments 

US 281 Niobrara River Bridge
Posted March 18, 2019, by Luke

My comment was moreso a snarky reply to Mike's "They don't make em' like they used to" bit.

I doubt an 1871 bowstring would've been able to withstand the hydrological forces at play here any better than the UCEB could've.

US 281 Niobrara River Bridge
Posted March 18, 2019, by Nathan Holth (webmaster [at] historicbridges [dot] org)

Here are photos of the dam, it wasn't just breached it was obliterated... https://journalstar.com/news/state-and-regional/nebraska/foo...

US 281 Niobrara River Bridge
Posted March 18, 2019, by Tony Dillon (spansaver [at] hotmail [dot] com)

Yes, it appears to be a massacre out there right now!

US 281 Niobrara River Bridge
Posted March 18, 2019, by George Oakley (Georgeoakley49 [at] yahoo [dot] com)

Luke,right now I think Nebraska is losing a lot of bridges besides this one due to the flooding.ABC nightly news showed a lot of bridges damaged or lost.

US 281 Niobrara River Bridge
Posted March 18, 2019, by Luke

It doesnt help that the dam right next to it literally failed...

US 281 Niobrara River Bridge
Posted March 18, 2019, by Mike Kerkau (mjkerkau [at] gmail [dot] com)

They don't make 'em like they used to, do they?