Damaged bridge near Tri-Cities will cost millions after being hit by suspected drunk driver

The state will spend $3.3 million to fix a damaged bridge near Burbank after a suspected drunk truck driver slammed into it this summer.

Gov. Jay Inslee signed an emergency declaration to fix the overpass that spans Highway 12 near the Snake River Bridge and carries traffic to Burbank Heights.

The bridge was damaged by a 39-year-old semi driver hauling an excavator on the busy Labor Day weekend. The machine was too tall to fit under the bridge and crashed into the side, damaging concrete and a sign.

The driver, Oscar Caldera-Gurrola, was arrested for DUI.

The Washington State Department of Transportation determined the overpass urgently needed to be repaired. The project will require the state to replace a girder, according to the declaration.

While the damage qualified it as an emergency, the overpass is not in imminent danger, said Summer Derrey, a Washington State Department of Transportation spokesperson. The damage was done to the sidewalk area of the bridge.

The department plans to go through it’s normal design process and seek contractor bids. Construction is preliminary planned to start next year.

The project is similar to an Interstate 82 overpass fix that was needed after a 2019 crash, department officials said. In that case, crews needed to remove and replace a girder after an oversize load hit the underside of the bridge.

Overpass history

The overpass at Highway 12 and Highway 124 is named for Deputy Sheriff Michael Estes, a Walla Walla County deputy killed in 2007 as he was responding to a call in Burbank.

A loaded flatbed truck broadsided his patrol car as he attempted to cross Highway 12 at the Highway 124 intersection. He was taken to Kadlec Regional Medical Center in Richland.

The bridge was credited with drastically reducing the number of injuries at the intersection after it opened in 2013.