As Washington County's bridge supervisor for 21 years, William Reed has been the person responsible for making sure the bridges are safe for the public. Apparently there are at least two new inadequate bridges he overlooked, as did state inspectors.
And, as of last week anyway, neither the county judge nor the county attorney, or anyone else could say how or why this has happened.
But as a result of shoddy construction captured on video, the weight limit on the Harvey Dowell Bridge, opened in 2013, has been reduced to a three-ton load limit and the under-construction Stonewall Bridge will be completely rebuilt.
How could this have happened?
George Braswell, an admirable heavy-equipment operator, blew the whistle last year with a federal civil-rights lawsuit naming the county judge and other officials, including supervisors, who he claims harassed and punished him for pointing out that both bridges were not being constructed with sufficient reinforcement to ensure their safety.
The predictable denials ensued following Braswell's filing until the video surfaced. County Judge Marilyn Edwards did do the right thing last week when she made that video public during a Quorum Court meeting. At the same time, she lowered the weight limit on the Dowell bridge and ordered the partially completed Stonewall Bridge west of Prairie Grove torn down and rebuilt according to proper specifications.
The video, submitted in connection with Braswell's lawsuit, shows former county assessor Jeff Williams (and Edwards' opponent in last year's election) in front of an unfinished concrete column of what he says is the Stonewall Bridge, a news story by reporter Dan Holtmeyer says. The story continues: "The concrete reaches about chest-high, with steel rebar reaching several more feet out of the concrete. Williams is able to pull this rebar out of the concrete by hand, showing it was inserted into pre-drilled holes about 6 inches deep into the concrete. This is consistent with several of Braswell's claims. Braswell claims similar issues exist at Harvey Dowell, which passed a state inspection after its completion."
Say what? Passed state inspection? Who are those inspectors and why do they still have their jobs?
The blueprints require unbroken steel bars stretching from the top to bottom of each column then connecting around horizontal rebar cages at the base.
"It's not a guideline, it's a requirement," Williams says in the Oct. 6 video. "Shortcuts like this should never occur in any construction project, especially when it's being done intentionally."
Now I'm no lawyer or police officer, but that sounds like the kind of thing I witnessed happening in Chicago and New Jersey. You know: Charge for proper things in construction but deliver the cheaper inadequate grades and techniques. That kind of thing always translates to more money, ya know.
Edwards, the story says, reported she was "disturbed" by the video received Wednesday as part of an exchange of evidence, and said she responded as quickly as possible. "That [construction] should never have been done that way ... I didn't want anyone to think I was hiding anything from you."
Shawn Shrum, assistant road superintendent, is quoted saying the bridges cost or would cost around $400,000 each. Stonewall was less than half-finished.
County attorney Steve Zega had said previously that the county would deal with safety concerns found at the bridges. "If it compromises our position in litigation, then so be it," Zega said before the Quorum Court meeting.
That's the spirit.
Braswell's lawsuit seeks damages only for alleged retaliation related to his whistle-blowing. This video seems to me to strengthen his lawsuit.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Erin Setser has ordered a settlement conference on April 21. Edwards said no one had been fired or punished yet in this God-awful mess while she reviews the new information. Reed, the Road Department's bridge supervisor also named in Braswell's suit, is retiring after 28 years of work.
The news story also says Braswell's lawsuit doesn't state when he initially took his concerns about bridge safety to Edwards and his superiors, other than sometime before September. The county denies such meetings took place.
Hmmm. Well, the term "meetings" could boil down to a matter of semantics.
Williams said Braswell contacted him last fall, thinking, "it might not be a bad idea to document it." He said he hadn't made the video public because the Road Department assured him the construction was safe. Oh really?
Williams gave the video to Braswell's attorney after being asked, the news story says.
The obvious question here to me is how many other bridges in Washington County might have been built under equally shoddy and inadequate conditions?
I'd say a complete audit and thorough inspection of all bridges built in the past 20 years is a necessity at this point. And what's the lucrative and legal accountability for those who short-sold we the people?
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Mike Masterson's column appears regularly in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Email him at mikemasterson10@hotmail.com.
Editorial on 03/28/2015