Preparations to begin for Leet Street Bridge removal

The end is near for at least a portion of the Leet Street Bridge.

Work to bring down the long-standing bridge connecting Washington Street and Beaver Street over Route 65 in Leetsdale will begin May 15, PennDOT spokesman Steve Cowan said May 12. The bridge has been closed to traffic since 2013. Cowan said PennDOT will remove its portion of the bridge.

Work is expected to take a month and cause restrictions to Route 65, Cowan said.

Single-lane closures in both directions of Route 65 will occur from Cross Street to Broad Street weekdays through June 16.

Southbound traffic will be restricted to one lane from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Northbound traffic will be restricted from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. The work is weather permitting, Cowan said.

One way in; same way out

When the Leet Street Bridge — more than a century old — closed to vehicular access in late 2013 after a state inspection determined it no longer was fit for traffic, it left residents in about 70 homes and anyone who works in the Leetsdale and Buncher industrial parks without a second way into and out of the area, which is situated between Norfolk Southern railroad tracks and the Ohio River. The area is blocked to the north along the Beaver County line by private, commercial businesses, and by the river and limited green space to the south.

In 2007, a Ferry Street road crossing over railroad tracks was closed when the Michele Maruca Memorial Overpass was opened between Broad Street and Brickworks Drive.

The bridge also provided easy access to a Port Authority bus stop on Beaver Street.

Before it closed to traffic, about 800 vehicles used the span daily, according to state records.

Norfolk Southern Railway Co., which owns half of the bridge, last year agreed to tear down its half, which extends over the railroad tracks. The other half is owned by the state.

The state Public Utility Commission issued an emergency order in 2013 to close the bridge following a safety inspection, and a discussion with officials from PennDOT, Norfolk Southern and Leetsdale Borough.

There had been discussion to remove the bridge a year ago.

Closing the bridge drew the ire of Washington Street residents who said they feared an emergency situation in the industrial park or on the railroad tracks would leave them without a quick escape.

Their fears were tested on Nov. 17, 2015, when a building owned by Lubrizol Corp., an oilfield chemicals business, was heavily damaged by an explosion and fire that quickly spread to another building. Black smoke containing chemicals forced the evacuation of more than 70 Leetsdale homes and prompted several schools in Beaver and Allegheny counties to keep students indoors. Eight people, including firefighters, were treated for injuries.

Hundreds of firefighters spent most of the day battling the fire at Leetsdale Industrial Park along Route 65.

That was not the first time a chemical reaction at the facility prompted a mass evacuation. In May 2010, high humidity caused a reaction in equipment that blended a chemical used for gas drilling, forming a cloud that forced the evacuation of about 500 workers for several hours. One worker was treated for chemical exposure.

Borough leaders have attempted to work with neighboring property owners to provide for an emergency exit.

Bobby Cherry is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at rcherry@tribweb.com and on Twitter at @bc_trib.