BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — The Michigan Street Bridge in Buffalo is closed to vehicles and pedestrians after city crews determined the heat caused the metal to expand to the point that the bridge can no longer close.
The Edward M. Cotter, the city's fireboat, was deployed Wednesday to try to cool the bridge down with water.
"We were out for about five hours flowing water from the Buffalo River onto the Michigan Street Bridge," said Michael Kick, the fireboat's captain.
Kick was one of a crew of seven spraying down the bridge.
"I estimate that we threw probably about 3 million gallons of water at the bridge while we were operating," Kick said.
WATCH: Buffalo's Michigan Street Bridge temporarily closed after heat caused metal expansion
It was a different task for a vessel that is used to break through feet of ice on Lake Erie in the winter.
"Now, with the temperature extremes, we go from breaking ice to throwing water because it's too hot," Kick explained.
Though the cooling helped, the bridge remained stuck Thursday, amid temperatures close to 90 degrees.
Two city engineers told me they now believe there is also an electrical issue with the bridge, also caused by the heat. It is not known when the bridge will reopen.
In the meantime, places like the Outer Harbor and Buffalo RiverWorks can still be accessed using the Ohio Street Bridge.
Bill Casale, who runs Buffalo RiverWorks, said the bridge closure is an "inconvenience," especially in the run-up to Fourth of July weekend.
"It's obviously very unfortunate news. RiverWorks is a very busy establishment; it's holiday time again, these things have happened in the past. We're hoping this will be a short-term issue for us and we can get back to normal business," Casale said.
"This is nobody's fault. We have to take this for what it is. It's a freak of nature with this heat," Casale added.
