Bridge Wrecked By 2010 Floods Now Open

Had it been scheduled for three hours earlier, the ceremony to officially reopen the Mill Street bridge near A.G. & G Inc. might have been washed out — as it happened, though, the weather was brisk and sunny at 2:30 p.m. for the event.

Mayor Joseph Polisena, state Sen. Frank Lombardo, and representatives of U.S. Sens. Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse gathered with about 40 residents, business owners, and town officials to celebrate the completion of the $150,000 project, almost two years after the 2010 floods.

Scituate Excavating, located in Cranston, was the main contractor for the construction job, which began in mid-November.

The Johnston Insider published a photo in its Nov. 16 edition that showed the beginning of the work.

Arthur DelFino, owner of the excavating company, estimated the cost of the project at about $115,000, which included sinking new piles in the riverbed below the bridge and adding rock and other material to the shoreline to help prevent future floods.

"Most of the work in the water, and keeping the right temperature for the concrete" were the biggest challenges of the project, DelFino explained.

Polisena added that he was impressed with how the company managed to set up the base for the bridge without diverting the river's flow.

"They had to work under a rapid — water wasn't rerouted, so they had to work under some adverse conditions," Polisena said.

Federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funds paid for the project, which Polisena said was "moved along" by the state's Congressional delegation following months of delays.

After Polisena read a brief statement, four residents used scissors to cut a pink ribbon, and Ptlm. David Slinko drive a Johnston Police SUV across the bridge as the ceremonial first vehicle to cross the bridge.