As winter's bitter cold weather has shown its face recently, officials from the Ohio Department of Transportation District 9 are keeping a close eye on the Ironton-Russell Bridge.

When temperatures are predicted to dip well below freezing, the Lawrence County ODOT facility in Ironton and officials from

district headquarters in Chillicothe will monitor the surface and air temperature at the bridge to determine occurrences of possible stress. If the temperature approaches the zero degree mark and continues falling, they will determine if it is necessary to close the bridge to traffic.

According to ODOT, while the Ironton-Russell Bridge is safe for travel, the bridge's steel truss structure is not wholly guarded against sub-zero degree temperatures. This, in part, is due to its age, construction, current condition and certain fatigue-prone details in which cold weather may have an adverse affect on the bridge's steel members.

The University of Cincinnati Infrastructure Institute has conducted

tests to collect and interpret data from the bridge. Strain gages were installed to monitor the bridge's structural integrity. During one such test that was performed, a sample of steel was removed from the bridge and tested for its mechanical properties.

If the temperature falls to minus five degrees Fahrenheit, the bridge will be subject to a full closure.

In the event the bridge is closed, motorists will be detoured from Ohio to Kentucky via the Ashland, Ky., bridge from U.S. Route 52.