Italian contractor General Smontaggi has carried out a successful bridge demolition project in the south of the country. Explosives were used to remove the redundant Viadotto Caffaro Bridge carrying the A3 Autostrade. The 390m long structure had been found to be unsuitable for modern traffic requirements on the route, located in Calabria. The demolition project was not straightforward as the new bridge had already been constructed alongside the redundant structure. The extensive pre-weakening work for the old bridge included cutting into the deck to ensure it collapsed downwards. The charges were timed in such a way as to break up the bridge deck first and allow those pieces to fall, before a second round of charges detonated to bring down the supports. The explosives for the supports were also placed very carefully to ensure that in falling, they would not strike any part of the new bridge.
