NewsDecember 13, 2018

A collection of photos showing the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge over the past 15 years.

Southeast Missourian archive
Construction of the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge continues on May 9, 2003. The new bridge was opened Dec. 13, 2003. (Fred Lynch)
Construction of the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge continues on May 9, 2003. The new bridge was opened Dec. 13, 2003. (Fred Lynch)
The Emerson Bridge can see in the background as hot tar was put down on part of a roof of the River Campus of the Southeast Missouri State University still under construction Tuesday, Jan., 2, 2007.
The Emerson Bridge can see in the background as hot tar was put down on part of a roof of the River Campus of the Southeast Missouri State University still under construction Tuesday, Jan., 2, 2007.
Traffic flows across the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge in Cape Girardeau as it rises above the swollen Mississippi River on Saturday, May 6, 2017. (Laura Simon)
Traffic flows across the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge in Cape Girardeau as it rises above the swollen Mississippi River on Saturday, May 6, 2017. (Laura Simon)
The River Campus of Southeast Missouri State University is situated next to the Mississippi River in this drone view Thursday, Aug. 2, 2018 in Cape Girardeau. (Fred Lynch)
The River Campus of Southeast Missouri State University is situated next to the Mississippi River in this drone view Thursday, Aug. 2, 2018 in Cape Girardeau. (Fred Lynch)
Raindrops fall on a window at Southeast Missouri State University's River Campus as lightning strikes behind the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge during a passing thunderstorm on Thursday afternoon, July 7, 2016 in Cape Girardeau. (Laura Simon)
Raindrops fall on a window at Southeast Missouri State University's River Campus as lightning strikes behind the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge during a passing thunderstorm on Thursday afternoon, July 7, 2016 in Cape Girardeau. (Laura Simon)
Fireworks light up the sky behind the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge at the close of the 2014 Spirit of America program  in Cape Girardeau. (Fred Lynch)
Fireworks light up the sky behind the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge at the close of the 2014 Spirit of America program in Cape Girardeau. (Fred Lynch)
U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson cuts the ceremonial cable to officially open the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge on Dec. 13, 2003, in Cape Girardeau. Nearby are U.S. Senator Christopher "Kit" Bond, left, David Phelps with the Illinois Department of Transportation and the Emerson family. (Fred Lynch)
U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson cuts the ceremonial cable to officially open the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge on Dec. 13, 2003, in Cape Girardeau. Nearby are U.S. Senator Christopher "Kit" Bond, left, David Phelps with the Illinois Department of Transportation and the Emerson family. (Fred Lynch)
Cape Girardeau Police chief Steve Strong, Ted McClellan, and Stan Johnson ride in the last vehicle to drive over the old Mississippi River Bridge prior to its official closing Saturday, Dec. 13, 2003 in Cape Girardeau.
Cape Girardeau Police chief Steve Strong, Ted McClellan, and Stan Johnson ride in the last vehicle to drive over the old Mississippi River Bridge prior to its official closing Saturday, Dec. 13, 2003 in Cape Girardeau.
A crowd of thousands attend opening day ceremonies for the new Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge on Dec. 13, 2003, in Cape Girardeau.
A crowd of thousands attend opening day ceremonies for the new Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge on Dec. 13, 2003, in Cape Girardeau.
Hundreds of people watched the demolition of the old Mississippi River bridge from the Cape Girardeau Riverfront Park, just before 7 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 9, 2004. The demolition blast--its numerous explosive charges sounding like a cannon and shooting up black clouds of smoke--dropped the 671-foot-long span nearest the Missouri shore into the river as planned. But the blast also set up a chain reaction that damaged the other remaining spans of the bridge. The blast caused the other 671-foot section of the main span to jackknife into the river, tearing out part of a concrete pier and sending one end of the remaining 314-foot span crashing into the water. (Fred Lynch)
Hundreds of people watched the demolition of the old Mississippi River bridge from the Cape Girardeau Riverfront Park, just before 7 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 9, 2004. The demolition blast--its numerous explosive charges sounding like a cannon and shooting up black clouds of smoke--dropped the 671-foot-long span nearest the Missouri shore into the river as planned. But the blast also set up a chain reaction that damaged the other remaining spans of the bridge. The blast caused the other 671-foot section of the main span to jackknife into the river, tearing out part of a concrete pier and sending one end of the remaining 314-foot span crashing into the water. (Fred Lynch)
Rally participants walk across the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge in Cape Girardeau, Mo., on Saturday, June 26, 2010, during an event organized by Bob Parker, candidate for Congress in Missouri's 8th District. (Kristin Eberts)
Rally participants walk across the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge in Cape Girardeau, Mo., on Saturday, June 26, 2010, during an event organized by Bob Parker, candidate for Congress in Missouri's 8th District. (Kristin Eberts)
Rays of light shine through a clouded sky behind the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge on Jan. 22, 2018, in Cape Girardeau. (Ben Matthews)
Rays of light shine through a clouded sky behind the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge on Jan. 22, 2018, in Cape Girardeau. (Ben Matthews)
John Gerner, left, Mike Pazdera, center, and Dustin Cramp, all with K.A. Pazdera Hauling and Excavating, stand on the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge while waiting to unload their truckload of concrete barriers on Thursday afternoon, May 12, 2016, in Cape Girardeau. Thirty truckloads of concrete barriers were used to barricade the right eastbound lane of Highway 74 across the bridge. The closure allowed contractors through MoDot to begin building scaffolding on the side of the bridge towers for routine concrete repair on the surface of the towers.(Laura Simon)
John Gerner, left, Mike Pazdera, center, and Dustin Cramp, all with K.A. Pazdera Hauling and Excavating, stand on the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge while waiting to unload their truckload of concrete barriers on Thursday afternoon, May 12, 2016, in Cape Girardeau. Thirty truckloads of concrete barriers were used to barricade the right eastbound lane of Highway 74 across the bridge. The closure allowed contractors through MoDot to begin building scaffolding on the side of the bridge towers for routine concrete repair on the surface of the towers.(Laura Simon)
The Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge in Cape Girardeau rises high above the swollen Mississippi River on Saturday, May 6, 2017. (Laura Simon)
The Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge in Cape Girardeau rises high above the swollen Mississippi River on Saturday, May 6, 2017. (Laura Simon)
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A collection of photos showing the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge over the past 15 years.

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