Woods Memorial Bridge closed for repairs Friday night after ‘mechanical malfunction’
The Woods Memorial Bridge was forced to close for maintenance just after 8 p.m. Friday, following another closure Friday afternoon that ended just before rush-hour traffic.
The iconic swing bridge connecting Beaufort and Lady’s Island experienced the first “mechanical malfunction” around 3:30 p.m Friday, halting vehicle traffic for just under an hour while a bridge technician made repairs.
The 64-year-old span opened for service in 1959 and was placed on The National Registry of Historic Places this January. In 2021, the bridge averaged 13,700 vehicle crossings a day.
According to Beaufort’s press release when the bridge received historic status, “The Woods Memorial Bridge was immortalized in the 1994 Best Picture, Forrest Gump. In one of the most famous scenes a bearded Tom Hanks as Forrest is shown running across a Mississippi River bridge, but in actuality, the scene was filmed on the Woods Memorial Bridge.”
This report will be updated as more information becomes available.
This story was originally published September 29, 2023 at 3:51 PM.
