The bridge broke with a loud bang on the night of September 30 when a heavy truck drove over it. The bridge shifted sideways and rose 40 centimetres.
We have brackets that hold the ends down with great force, and we can now confirm that one of these brackets has broken, says Roberto Maiorana, director general of the Swedish Transport Administration, to TT.
The truck remains
The truck is still on the bridge because of the risk of it moving even further. The hope is that it can be moved within a few days, once enough counterweight has been put in place.
"It is the precautionary measures that need to guide our work. It is not about a lack of resources," says Maiorana.
He does not want to say whether the bridge will be repaired before Christmas or whether repairs could be delayed until next year.
We will know more once we have removed the truck.
The Strömsund Bridge, which was built in the 1950s, underwent renovations until 2025, but the parts that broke were not included in the renovation.
The fact that the bridge broke when a 100-tonne vehicle crossed it should not be interpreted as a mistake in granting the truck a permit to drive over it, the director general emphasizes. The maximum weight for crossing without a permit is 74 tonnes per vehicle, but several vehicles of that weight can cross at the same time. In this case, the truck was alone on the bridge.
“Help the residents”
The bridge closure is causing major problems for residents in the area, who are being directed onto long detours, but the Swedish Transport Administration now has two emergency ferries in place. They will be put into service as soon as the municipality has granted the final permits, Maiorana says.
They are being deployed primarily to help the residents of Strömsund.
Heavy traffic using the E45 will continue to be directed onto diversion routes.