Crack in girder closes Susquehanna River bridge

    Highway officials are shutting down one of the few bridges over the Susquehanna River in southern Pennsylvania because inspectors found a crack on a girder.

    The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation moved to indefinitely close the Norman Wood Bridge between York and Lancaster counties soon after the crack was detected on Monday afternoon.

    PennDOT spokesman Greg Penny said engineers are working to determine what repairs are needed before the department can call in a contractor to fix the structure.

    The two-lane, 21-span Norman Wood Bridge carries Pennsylvania Route 372 over the river in a rural, agricultural region.

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    PennDOT says it gets about 4,300 vehicles a day.

    It’s the only span over the Susquehanna in a 40-mile stretch between Wrightsville, Pennsylvania, and the Conowingo Dam in Maryland. It was built in 1968.

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