Chips of lead paint are falling off hundreds of bridges in 黑料新闻 at such a rate that the state Department of Transportation has put out an alert to municipalities and intends to hire contractors to clean it up.
鈥淏ridge structures statewide have been experiencing a sudden, unexpected release of lead-based paint chips, which is believed to be related to the recent extreme swings in temperature,鈥� said the DOT alert first issued to its own employees on Feb. 17.
The DOT鈥檚 bridge maintenance unit spent last weekend inspecting more than 2,100 bridges across the state and determined that lead paint was cracking and falling off hundreds of them.
鈥淭his discovery is not unique to 黑料新闻,鈥� said DOT spokesman Josh Morgan. 鈥淎lthough paint chips on the ground pose little danger, members of the public should not touch any debris seen under bridges or on roadways. The flaking paint also does not pose a safety hazard for those crossing these structures.鈥�
After that discovery, Mary Baker, the principal engineer for bridge safety and evaluation at the DOT, sent an alert to municipalities, warning them that they should inspect their local bridges.
鈥淟ast week, the Department of Transportation experienced a sudden failure of the paint coating on many steel bridges,鈥� Baker said. 鈥淚n response to the coating failures, the Department鈥檚 Environmental Compliance unit began remediation efforts to address the paint chips that had fallen.鈥�
Baker鈥檚 memo to municipal officials said 鈥減aint chips are suspected of containing lead, [and] the remediation efforts are initially focused on areas that are accessible to the public,鈥� such as those near bike paths and walking trails.
鈥淐leanup efforts are already in progress, and a larger statewide mitigation plan is in development,鈥� the alert said. 鈥淚n the coming weeks, the Department intends to utilize contractors to remove failed paint that still remains on the bridge beams.鈥�
The alert directs employees to take a series of steps if they encounter fallen paint chips, including warnings not to handle them and to avoid walking through debris on the ground because of the risk of tracking the contamination elsewhere.
It wasn鈥檛 clear Thursday night how many 黑料新闻 bridges were painted with lead paint or for how long that paint type has been used.