Bío Bío River Bridge, Concepción, Chile Acrow Responds to Earthquake Emergency
Working with the Chilean Army, Acrow delivered this nearly mile-long bridge to reestablish Concepción’s major transportation lifeline as quickly as possible.
The bridge is located in Concepción, the second largest city in Chile. It is comprised of a two lane wide Acrow bridge with 37 spans and a total length of 0.91 miles (1.46 km). This Acrow bridge was built during 2011 to replace three existing bridges that were severely damaged or collapsed during the earthquake of February 2010.
The contract for the design and supply of this bridge was provided to Acrow by the Army of Chile. Due to the emergency conditions, the Army emphasized that the bridge needed to be assembled and commissioned as fast as possible. After receiving a notice to proceed, Acrow worked with its local partner to design and fabricate the modular prefabricated steel bridge in the United States. The bridge components were then shipped to southern Chile, where the bridge was constructed and commissioned, all in 80 days. The bridge, while temporary, will be in service for 3-5 years.
