Holt-Bragg Bridge
| Holt-Bragg Bridge | |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 33°25′08″S 151°17′10″E / 33.419°S 151.286°ECoordinates: 33°25′08″S 151°17′10″E / 33.419°S 151.286°E |
| Carries | Road traffic |
| Crosses | Piles Creek |
| Locale | Somersby, Central Coast |
| Official name | Holt-Bragg Bridge |
| Named for |
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| Maintained by | Central Coast Council |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Arch bridge |
| History | |
| Opened | 30 June 2009 |
 Holt-Bragg Bridge
Location in New South Wales
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Holt-Bragg Bridge is an arch bridge that crosses Piles Creek at Somersby on the Central Coast of New South Wales, Australia as part of the Pacific Highway. It was opened on 30 June 2009 as a replacement for the previous bridge that collapsed two years earlier during severe weather. The bridge is named in honour of the five people who perished when the bridge collapsed.
The Pacific Highway is the main road link from Sydney to Brisbane and travels alongside the coast. The section from Cowan to Kariong, where the Holt-Bragg Bridge is, follows a scenic winding route, however, with the majority of traffic using the Pacific Motorway.
The original bridge was built around 1930 when the new road linking Sydney to Newcastle was opened. It replaced the road via Wisemans Ferry that had become inadequate and meant that the majority of travel was made by railway or sea. It is located roughly on the original track from Hornsby to Kariong constructed by George Peat in 1854 that was closed in 1899.
On 8 June 2007 the Central Coast was battered by strong winds and torrential rain caused by an intense low pressure system a short distance out to sea. The damage as a result of these storms resulted in them being declared a natural disaster. At approximately 4pm the road above Piles Creek gave way, leaving a 5-metre-wide (16 ft) by 10-metre-deep (33 ft) fissure. Shortly afterwards, Adam Holt failed to stop and the car fell into the creek. Holt, along with his girlfriend Roslyn Bragg, their daughters Madison and Jasmine and nephew Travis Bragg were all killed.
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Wikipedia