Iowa railroad bridge opens 1 track a day after barge crash

DES MOINES, Iowa—A railroad bridge across the swollen Mississippi River in southeastern Iowa partially reopened Friday, more than a day after it was struck by a grain-filled barge.

The BNSF bridge at Burlington is part of a main rail for freight and passenger traffic, and its closure has disrupted schedules for more than 100 trains, BNSF Railway spokesman Steve Forsberg said.

The barge remained pinned against the bridge Friday, but the line on the south side of the bridge opened before noon, Forsberg said. The other line was struck by the barge and remained closed.

"That track suffered damage, and that will take a couple of days to repair," he said. "Until that is repaired, we'll be at restricted speeds."

Crews continued to vacuum grain out of the barge to lighten it and make it easier to tow, he said.

The bridge was closed early Thursday after several barges broke away from a staging area upstream. Three struck a pier on the U.S. Highway 34 bridge that connects Burlington and Gulfport, Ill., and one of those also hit the railroad bridge.

The highway bridge, also called the Great River Bridge, reopened Thursday afternoon.

Officials with the Iowa Department of Transportation said inspectors found only minor blemishes on the pier. No damage was found on the bridge's deck or cabling system.

Amtrak rerouted the Iowa leg of its California Zephyr, which runs from Chicago to San Francisco.

"It's a very, very long detour," Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari said.

Until the bridge reopened, freight trains were being held rather than rerouted, Forsberg said.

"A train schedule is measured in days, so in this case, if you reroute, you could add more time to those schedules than just holding them until the bridge reopens," he said.

The Coast Guard was investigating how the barges broke free, but Lt. Cmdr. Tim Whalen said it appeared the level of the river -- more than 5 feet above flood stage -- and the swift current and debris in the water contributed.