SIKESTON -The Chester bridge linking Perryville, Missouri and Chester, Illinois was reduced to one lane this morning so repairs could be made to the bridge’s navigation lights which allow towboat pilots to see the bridge after dark. .
An email announcing the lane closing was received at the Sun Times News Online at 7:46 a.m. only 14 minutes before the restriction was to begin.
When asked about the short notice, a MoDOT customer service representative explained that the U.S. Coast Guard ordered repairs to the bridge’s navigational lights, which the representative said had burned out. According to the Chester Bridge webcam the lights went out between 2:30 and 3 a.m. June 1st. The representative was unable to say when the Coast Guard notified MoDOT of the problem.
The top photo show the bridge with its navigational lights on at 2:30 a.m. June 1. The bottom photo shows the bridge one hour later at 3:30 a.m. with the lights out.
A message was left with the U.S. Coast Guard Western Rivers Command Center in St. Louis, but as of press time, there had been no response.
MoDOT said in its news release that temporary signals would be used to assist motorists through the work zone.
Repairs were completed and the bridge traffic returned to normal before noon.