A bridge built in a week!

Last month, we had the opportunity to be part of a very fun project! A missionary-run orphanage in another part of Honduras had a problem. They are located on a small farm, and a river runs through their land. Sometimes the river floods, and it becomes dangerous to cross . . . but the cows on the other side of the river still needed to be milked! Plus, in the future, they intend to expand their projects on the other side of the river, and they'd need year-around access for that.

They needed a bridge.

We build bridges.

It was a match made in heaven!



After months of planning and preparations, Allen and Russell loaded up tools, materials, our construction crew, and Boo (she went along to take pictures) into two Land Cruisers. They drove the 10 hour trip to Yoro, way up into the mountains along the north coast.

Boo took photos and kept a log, just quickly jotting down what progress was made each day. I'm going to share some of the photos, along with her log entries. Boo and Allen left on Friday, July 11th, and drove the first part of the trip, as far as the city of San Pedro Sula. They spent Saturday shopping in the city for some special clamps that were needed for the bridge, and drove the rest of the way to the orphanage on Sunday. The log begins upon their arrival.

Sunday - 
got to Jason's at 12:00pm
Shot the sight for the bridge
hung out with Jason's family

"Jason" refers to the missionary-in-charge at the orphanage, Jason Furrow. "Shooting the sight" means using a small, electronic tape measure to choose the best location for the bridge to cross the river.

Monday - 
found the best place for the bridge
cut down all the plants in our way
dug about one-and-a-half foundations
moved 7 pickup trucks of rocks from the river and 2 of gravel down from the gate
had the help of Scott's team, but just for today

"Scott" refers to another missionary, Scott Ledford, who brought a team he was hosting up to help with the bridge project for a day.

Tuesday -
poured the first foundation
finished digging the second
moved rocks and sand to the second, too
Jason's team came last night and started work today

"Jason's team" was a short term mission trip group from Georgia, who specifically came to be laborers on this bridge construction project.

Wednesday -
poured the second foundation
poured the first set of handrails

Thursday -
poured second set of handrails
started putting up cable
went fishing

Friday -
set up almost all of the cable

Saturday -
finished setting up the cable
put boards on the deck, until we ran out of boards

A small amount of work on the bridge could not be completed before our group came home. The lumber for the deck was being cut (with a chainsaw) as the construction was ongoing, and there wasn't enough lumber ready before our week was up, plus the installation of those boards could be completed by the workers at the orphanage. There were also some specialized clamps (for holding the cables) which we couldn't find in country, so a visiting team brought them down in their luggage later, and those were also installed after we left.

But still . . . if all of the materials had been ready, it WOULD have been a bridge in a week, which is pretty good, I think.

More pictures, from the week when the bridge construction was in progress, will follow soon!