Hanging from a nearly 900-foot structure

Mike O’Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge Inspection

How many engineers hang by a rope from enormous concrete structures just to get a closer look? Stantec’s bridge engineers did just that when they inspected the majestic Mike O’Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge just downstream from the iconic Hoover Dam.

This aesthetic spandrel arch bridge spans 870 feet above the Colorado River. Under our bridge inspection contract with NDOT, Stantec provided the first routine inspection of this bridge—the first performed under live traffic. Then again in 2017, we were out inspecting this famous bridge again.

The concrete arch span structure—with its open spandrel arch main span and a total length of 1,896 feet—is used by thousands of vehicles and hundreds of pedestrians every day. We completed the complex, hands on inspection of the entire bridge in approximately six days. The success of this high-profile rope access inspection is credited to the experience, certification, and training of our structural engineering climbing team and the application of the Society of Professional Rope Access Technicians’ Safe Work Practices at every phase of the inspection.