Red Bridge (Kamloops)

About

The Red Bridge was a road bridge that spanned the South Thompson River in Kamloops, British Columbia. The 400-metre-long (1, 300 ft) bridge carried two narrow road lanes of Mt. Paul Way between Lorne Street on the south bank of the river to the Mt. Paul industrial area on the north side. Mt. Paul Way then continued for 1.3 km (0.81 mi) through the industrial park to intersect with Highway 5. The Red Bridge was of the Howe truss design, and was one of the only remaining functioning bridges of this type in British Columbia. It was completely destroyed by fire on September 19, 2024. The bridge got its name from the red-coloured paint applied to the bridge's piers and, more prominently, pedestrian handrails. This legacy stretches back to the first and second bridges, meaning the name was already well-established by the time the current bridge was built. The wood surrounding the piers had not been repainted in many years, so the colour was barely visible, but a recent repainting along the edges of the bridge deck and the pedestrian handrails displayed the namesake colour well.

Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Photography via Wikimedia Commons.