What is WSDOT’s protocol for monitoring the bridge during a storm?
Currently, our protocol dictates that when winds of 35 mph or greater are registered for 15 minutes, the Traffic Management Center will dispatch a wind watch to the bridge. This means that a senior bridge crew member is dispatched to the bridge to personally observe the conditions and reaction of the structure and how traffic is handling the weather impacts. Within 30 minutes of arriving at the bridge, the senior crew member will determine if in fact a wind watch is warranted and if so will call out the HCB standby crew to monitor the conditions at the bridge.
