Photos courtesy City of Burien

FOLLOWUP: As we first reported last Friday, Feb. 10, the City of Burien has closed the Peter Western Bridge – located at S. 116th Street, between Military and 24th Ave S. – to all traffic as of Thursday, Feb. 9.
The bridge has been closed due to damage caused by a deep snow followed by heavy rain, which resulted in the ravine experiencing severe scouring and erosion, significantly damaging the bridge’s support columns.
The creek running through the ravine has also moved, causing further erosion.
City staff notified the Burien Police, Fire Department and utility companies, and are attempting to implement emergency repairs to prevent further damage to the bridge.
The Public Works department is working with outside technical experts to take immediate steps to ensure the safety of the area.
A few facts about the bridge:

  • It was built in 1950.
  • It underwent a seismic retrofit in 1996.
  • It was inspected in June 2016 by King County. The report state that there were no issues with scouring of the hillside.
  • There is an apartment complex as well as a few private residences near the bridge.


]]>

Founder/Publisher/Editor. Three-time National Emmy Award winning Writer (“Bill Nye the Science Guy”), Director, Producer, Journalist and more...