City plans to install security fence under University Bridge after fire

The City of Saskatoon is beefing up security under the University Bridge after a fire at a homeless camp damaged a sewer line and resulted in a multi-day closure of the South Saskatchewan River crossing.

Terry Schmidt, the city’s general manager of transportation and construction, told city council on Wednesday that a site inspection was completed this week to determine how to restrict access to the bridge’s arches and piers.

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The fire on January 19 was the third encampment fire to break out under the bridge in the past 19 months.

“The piers and the abutments are eight feet off the ground, so they are difficult to access already, but we are looking at other means to restrict access even more,” Schmidt said.

“We already have a contract in place with a contractor. The materials are being ordered. The fencing will be a welded expanded metal sheet with razor wire, similar to what we’ve used at other bridge locations.”

The fire earlier this month caused a sewer pipe to melt and spill 1.5 million litres – 330,000 gallons – of raw sewerage into the river. The bridge was closed to traffic while a 500-metre bypass line was set up and engineers inspected the span for structural damage. An early estimate pegged the cost of the damage at roughly $100,000.

All traffic restrictions were lifted Tuesday afternoon after repairs were completed on the main sewer line.

Schmidt said work on the fencing will begin as soon as materials have been secured.

Once the snow and ice have melted, the riverbank around the bridge will be treated to eliminate surface bacteria, the city added, and the site will then undergo a thorough environmental reassessment by the provincial and federal environment ministries, as well as the Water Security Agency and City of Saskatoon.