202004.01
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Northbound 405 reopens after big rig hits bridge in Westminster

by in News

  • Crews inspect the Westminster Ave. bridge after a big rig carrying a backhoe hit the bridge and sent debris onto the northbound 405 freeway in Westminster, CA on Wednesday, April 1, 2020. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Workers clean up debris left when a truck hit the Westminster Blvd. bridge on the northbound 405 Freeway in Westminster, CA, on Wednesday, April 1, 2020. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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  • Crews clean up debris at the Westminster Ave. bridge after a big rig carrying a backhoe hit the bridge and sent material onto the northbound 405 freeway in Westminster, CA on Wednesday, April 1, 2020. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Workers clean up debris left when a truck hit the Westminster Blvd. bridge on the northbound 405 Freeway in Westminster, CA, on Wednesday, April 1, 2020. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • The northbound 405 freeway was closed at Bolsa Ave. for about 3 hours after a big rig carrying a backhoe hit the bridge and sent debris onto the freeway in Westminster, CA on Wednesday, April 1, 2020. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Crews inspect the Westminster Ave. bridge after a big rig carrying a backhoe hit the bridge and sent debris onto the northbound 405 freeway in Westminster, CA on Wednesday, April 1, 2020. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Cars are forced off the northbound 405 at Goldenwest Street in Huntington Beach after a truck hit the Westminster Blvd. bridge on the northbound 405 Freeway and forced the closure of all northbound lanes in Westminster, CA, on Wednesday, April 1, 2020. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Cars are forced off the northbound 405 at Goldenwest Street in Huntington Beach after a truck hit the Westminster Blvd. bridge on the northbound 405 Freeway and forced the closure of all northbound lanes in Westminster, CA, on Wednesday, April 1, 2020. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Workers clean up debris left when a truck hit the Westminster Blvd. bridge on the northbound 405 Freeway in Westminster, CA, on Wednesday, April 1, 2020. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Cars are forced off the northbound 405 at Goldenwest Street in Huntington Beach after a truck hit the Westminster Blvd. bridge on the northbound 405 Freeway and forced the closure of all northbound lanes in Westminster, CA, on Wednesday, April 1, 2020. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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The northbound 405 Freeway was shuttered in Westminster for several hours Wednesday morning after a big rig hit a bridge overpass that sent debris into the roadway, forcing drivers to take surface streets to get around the closure.

It was shortly before 7 a.m. when the big rig, carrying a backhoe, hit the bridge for Westminster Boulevard, according to the California Highway Patrol.

No one was injured, but the crash damaged the bridge’s temporary framwork; the bridge was under construction to improve upon the older one.

All cars were diverted onto the surfaces streets and away while crews cleared the lanes and checked the structure.

The lanes were closed at Westminster Boulevard until reopened about 10 a.m. Traffic was backed up for almost three miles during the closure.

The bridge is under construction as part of a $1.9 billion project to widen the 405 freeway from the 73 Freeway in Costa Mesa to the 605 Freeway near the Los Angeles County line.

Megan Abba, a spokeswoman for the Orange County Transportation Authority, said that the structure of the bridge itself was not damaged, just the temporary framework used to support it during construction.

There were crews working on it at the time of the impact, Abba said.

The plan was to closed down the lanes again overnight and repair the damage, Abba said, but there won’t be any major impacts to the construction project.