Partial Collapse Shuts Down South Carolina Bridge
South Carolina DOT had previously planned to start an estimated $6.425-million replacement project for the 55-year-old bridge this fall.
Photo courtesy South Carolina Dept. of Transportation
The South Carolina Dept. of Transportation is investigating the partial collapse of a two-lane load-restricted bridge in rural Pickens County. No injuries were reported in the incident, which occurred early Monday afternoon.
Built in 1968, the bridge spanning the Crowe Creek/Ellenburg Branch of Lake Keowee was part of a 14-mile detour that had been in place since last year while SCDOT replaced two other structures on nearby State Highway 183. According to local media, witnesses reported that concrete and dump trucks were crossing the 10-span, 165-ft-long structure as the collapse began. SCDOT says the bridge, which had been scheduled for replacement due to structural deficiencies, was determined to be in fair condition during its most recent inspection, conducted in April 2025. Prior to the addition of detour traffic, the bridge handled an estimated 2,000 vehicles per day.
SCDOT had planned to keep the existing bridge open during construction of a three-span, 190-ft replacement crossing on a new alignment, according to the agency’s 2022 public information program. Estimated at the time to cost $6.425 million, that two-year project is due to get underway this fall. The agency has yet to determine how the collapse will affect the project schedule and strategy.
With more than one-quarter of its interstate, primary and second bridges built in the 1960s or earlier, South Carolina’s transportation leaders have sought additional funding to close a growing maintenance gap. Each of the last two sessions of the state legislature have allocated $200 million toward bridge work, with the latest round set to address nearly 160 structures. SCDOT has also received nearly $240 million in federal funding for bridge projects in the past year.
