HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — After several months of bridge repair, the East Freeway is back open in both directions.
All mainlanes of I-10 East Freeway EB at the San Jacinto River back to three lanes this morning. Thank you for your patience during the WB bridge repairs. pic.twitter.com/c4GwfbxPmG
— TxDOT- HOU District (@TxDOTHouston) January 20, 2020
The East Fwy is back open this morning after several months of bridge repair! @abc13houston #ABC13 https://t.co/noYp6Nwyj6 pic.twitter.com/BnlpXv17gl
— Elissa Rivas (@ElissaRivas13) January 20, 2020
The bridge had been shut down since September of last year, when several barges crashed into it during the height of flooding from Imelda.
At the time, engineers said they had validated information that the eastbound bridge was unaffected by the barge hits and they were able to open two eastbound lanes and two westbound lanes.
Divers and state engineer teams also inspected the bridge, confirming damage to several support columns on the westbound span of the double bridge.
RELATED: Barge crash at I-10 bridge leaves residents stuck at home
The incident follows a similar closure in the past few years, again because of barges that tore loose during floods.
SEE ALSO: I-10 traffic jams continue after barge crash
The video above is from a previous story.