The Estonian Defense Forces (EDF) demolished an aging bridge in Järva County on Wednesday, Maaleht reported.
The controlled detonation of the Piiumetsa Bridge took place at noon Wednesday, and the EDF personnel were joined by members of the civilian Transport Administration (Transpordiamet) for the job.
The structure, also known as the Jõeküla Bridge, was a traffic-bearing road bridge on the on the Paide–Roosna-Alliku–Kuimetsa road, and spanned the Lintsi River, in Türi municipality.
The bridge had reached the end of its serviceable life, and will be replaced by a steel arch structure, which meets modern standards, traffic loads, and clearance requirements.
“The Jõeküla Bridge had deteriorated to the point where repairing it is no longer practical, and a new bridge must be built instead. This once again provides an excellent opportunity to continue our cooperation with the Defense Forces and use the bridge as a training object for another demolition exercise,” said Olari Valter, bridge analyst with the Transport Administration.
An EDF Engineers Battalion conducted the operation, which was also intended to bring greater know-how and skills to defense personnel, for instance in blowing bridges at key locations in order to obstruct an enemy’s progress.
“Supporting the Transport Administration in the demolition of a real structure gives us an excellent opportunity to maintain the unit’s professional competence and gather practical expertise, enabling us to be better prepared to carry out our wartime duties,” said Capt Urmas Tonto of the EDF 1st Infantry Brigade’s Engineer Battalion (Pioneeripataljon), who led the demolition work.
NATO military personnel from the British and French armies also attended.
The bridge was a simple two-span supported beam affair, built in 1963 and last renovated in 1998, and it is the fifth structure to be demolished during a joint EDF-Transport Administration exercise.
Once the remains of the demolished bridge have been completely cleared away, the work on the new bridge, estimated to cost nearly €476,000 plus VAT, can get underway – during this time, pedestrian access will be maintained via a temporary footbridge, while road traffic has already been diverted along nearby local roads.
The presence of larger NATO equipment on Estonia’s roads, including main battle tanks, which can weigh in excess of 60 tonnes, has brought in focus the need to ensure infrastructure is sufficiently load-bearing.
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