March 20, 2025

By Lane Kimble

GREEN BAY, Wis. — A Wisconsin bridge needs a “vulnerability assessment” following the deadly Key Bridge crash in Baltimore last year.

The National Transportation Safety Board on Thursday listed the Leo Frigo Bridge in Green Bay as one of 68 bridges across 19 states needing the assessment to see if it’s at risk of collapse from a ship collision.

CBS News was one of the first news outlets to cover the report. You can read the NSTB’s report and find a full list of the bridges HERE.

The NTSB recommendation lists the Leo Frigo Bridge as “critical/essential,” meaning it serves as an “important link” in Wisconsin’s transportation system. Other bridges on the report include the Golden Gate Bridge and the Brooklyn Bridge.

Six construction workers died March 26, 2024 when a huge container ship lost power and crashed into the Key Bridge’s piling, sending the structure into the water.

The NTSB found that had Maryland’s Transportation Authority conducted a vulnerability assessment on the Key Bridge based on the American Association of State Highway Transportation Officials’ recommendation, they would have found the bridge was “above the acceptable risk” and could have proactively reduced said risk, potentially saving lives.

It’s worth noting the report does not suggest the bridges on the list are at imminent risk of collapsing, but should all be evaluated for their level of risk, CBS News reports.

The Leo Frigo Bridge opened in 1981 and carries I-43 over the Fox River in Green Bay.

WisDOT temporarily closed the bridge in 2013 when a 400-foot stretch sagged.

Crews most recently painted the steel arch and girders and added lights to improve safety inspections in 2023.