Truck crash destroys pedestrian bridge over Moanalua Freeway
A truck towing a forklift smashed through a pedestrian bridge over Moanalua Freeway near Aloha Stadium and Aiea Elementary School at about noon today, closing westbound lanes for about four hours.
Police re-opened townbound lanes of the freeway at about 1:15 p.m. and Moanalua Road at about 3:38 p.m. Westbound lanes of Moanalua freeway were opened shortly after
But freeway onramps in the Ewa-direction around the accident scene remained closed.
A state Department of Transportation official said a dump truck was towing a trailer with a forklift on it and that the forklift hit the pedestrian bridge over Moanalua Road.
Another DOT official, spokeswoman Caroline Sluyter, said the company did not have a permit to transport an oversized load. A police officer identified the company as Tibbitts Trucking.
The bridge had a clearance of 15 feet, 6 inches, a sign there says. The bridge connects the stadium with the Aiea residential community.
No serious injuries were reported and no ambulances were sent to the scene.
An accident on H-1 Freeway on Sept. 5, 2006 damaged an Aiea overpass and backed up traffic for hours in the Ewa direction.
A military truck hit the underpass and engineers determined the overpass was unsafe. Repairs cost $500,000. The military picked up the tab.