Bells Mills Road closed after vehicle strikes covered bridge
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Bells Mills Road connecting South Huntingdon and Sewickley townships has been closed at the Bells Mills Road bridge, after a vehicle struck the bridge on Tuesday, according to PennDOT officials.
Damage to the bridge necessitated the road closure, according to PennDOT spokesperson Melissa Maczko.
Vaughn Neil, an engineer with Westmoreland County’s roads and bridges department, said the vehicle that did the damage fled the scene. State police are investigating.
A detour along Route 136, Route 31 and Turkeytown Road is in place.
The red bridge was built in 1850 over Sewickley Creek by architect Daniel McCain, connecting South Huntingdon and Sewickley townships. The county completely rebuilt it in 1988, eight years after it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The structure was named for the Bell brothers who operated a nearby gristmill in the 19th century. It is Westmoreland County’s last remaining covered bridge.
The bridge nearly burned down in 2020, after a report of smoke on the bridge prompted firefighters to find hot embers and a softball-sized hole in the decking.