A voyage by a Chinese heavy-lift vessel temporarily closed the Delaware Memorial Bridge early Saturday morning.
At about 1 a.m., the Zhen Hua. 16, a heavy lift vessel transporting new ship-to-shore (STS) cranes bound for Philadelphia, made its way under the bridge with a few feet to spare.
As a precaution and to eliminate driver distraction, the Delaware Memorial Bridge, both northbound and southbound, was temporarily closed to all traffic.
The distance from the water level to the top of the cranes aboard the ZHEN HUA 16 is 188 feet, 5 inches. The structures were four to nine feet below the deck of the bridge.
Due to tides levels and the Delaware Memorial Bridge’s measured clearances, the vessel must travel under the spans during the period of low tide, the DRBA reported.
Produced by Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industry Co in China, the two new super-post-Panamax cranes are destined for the Packer Avenue Marine Terminal.
