Contractors for the $100-million I-40 White River bridge replacement project in Arkansas have agreed to replace a pier cap that state highway officials claim may have been structurally compromised during a lightning-interrupted concrete pour. In acceding to the state’s wishes, however, the joint venture of Parsons and CJ Mahan Construction plans to seek reimbursement for the additional work, which it has insisted is unnecessary.
The Arkansas Dept. of Transportation rejected the August 2019 nighttime pour for the 120-foot-long pier cap, asserting that a 2-1/2 hour interruption during a thunderstorm created the potential of a cold joint. The agency also questioned Parsons/Mahan’s decision to initiate the pour, given multiple predictions for threatening weather in the area that night.