130-year-old bridge reopens 2 years after partial collapse

PAOLI, Ind. (AP) - A 130-year-old iron bridge that partially collapsed when a semitrailer tried to cross it two years ago has reopened in southern Indiana.

Elected officials and residents were on hand Wednesday as the Gospel Street Bridge reopened in Paoli (pay-OH'-lee), the Orange County seat about 50 miles northwest of Louisville, Kentucky.

The bridge built in the 1880s partially collapsed on Dec. 25, 2015, as a truck carrying a load of bottled water weighing nearly six times the posted limit drove onto it and became struck.

County Commissioners president Richard Dixon says the bridge's collapse "was a total disaster" and its closure created traffic headaches for local residents.

The bridge's restoration cost $750,000. The span now has height clearance bars to deter large trucks from trying to cross it.