Wind blows barge into Far South Side bridge, closing it for weeks of repairs

A Far South Side bridge over the Calumet River is closed for repairs after an unmanned barge was blown into by high winds early Wednesday.

An empty barge became unmoored by high winds about 12:45 a.m. and collided with the base of the the 100th Street bridge, according to Chicago Department of Transportation spokesman Michael Claffey.

The barge hit the truss under the moveable bridge and became stuck, Claffey said. Workers along the river found out about the collision right way.

“We’ll have to replace the steel parts, which will be installed by CDOT employees over two weeks,” Claffey said. The bridge will stay closed to traffic until then.

Claffey said no one was hurt, and that there was no danger to people driving on the bridge, but the bridge needs repairs to stay structurally sound.

Until the bridge is fixed, traffic will be rerouted to 95th Street bridge, Claffey said.

Chicago has been under a “high wind warning” from the National Weather Service for most of Wednesday.

By noon Wednesday, the weather service reported wind gusts of 61 mph at O’Hare International Airport, and gusts of 56 mph at Midway.