Bye bye bridge: vital link between towns washed away in floods
As the Manning River slowly starts to subside revealing the damage down by the historic floods, residents of the Mid-Coast were shocked to learn that the vital link between the two towns has been destroyed.
The Bight Bridge, which connects the towns of Wingham and Tinonee, is no stranger to floods. She has withstood many, many inundations since being built in 1963.
But this flood, the biggest and most devastating in the Manning's recorded history, was too much for her. A large section of the deck of the bridge has collapsed and washed away.
Half of her is missing.
Residents first became aware of the damage when Wingham local, Brett Godwin, posted drone footage and photographs on the town's Facebook page.
While the waters still covered what was left of the bridge on Saturday morning, May 24, 2025, it was plain to see that something was clearly not right.
The bridge appears to have broken off at the Wingham entrance to the bridge.
As of Saturday afternoon, people on the Wingham side were heading to the town's tennis courts, which sits high on the banks overlooking the river, to see the damage for themselves.
Surf Life Saving NSW members from Newcastle and Pacific Palms were also at the viewing spot with an IRB (inflatable rescue boat), doing surveillance on the bridge for MidCoast Council.
The Manning River Times contacted MidCoast Council on Saturday morning regarding the Bight Bridge. However, as flood waters still cover what is left of the bridge and mud, silt and debris block the Tinonee end of the bridge, the council has not yet been able to assess the situation.
What is clear is that the people of Tinonee will have no quick access to Wingham for at least a few years to come, and it will cost many millions of dollars to reconstruct the bridge.
Construction of The Bight Bridge began in 1962 and completed in December 1962. It was officially opened on April 11, 1964.
The bridge was engineered to withstand flooding. It was made of pre-stressed concrete, with collapsible handrails on the downriver side. These rails were lowered in times of flooding to allow debris to wash over the bridge, allowing it to withstand much stress on the structure.
A pathway enabled pedestrian access on the side with the rails, from where local children were often seen fishing.
Prior to the bridge's existence, a punt operated over the river at that site from 1906.
As the Manning River slowly starts to subside revealing the damage down by the historic floods, residents of the Mid-Coast were shocked to learn that the vital link between the two towns has been destroyed.
The Bight Bridge, which connects the towns of Wingham and Tinonee, is no stranger to floods. She has withstood many, many inundations since being built in 1963.
But this flood, the biggest and most devastating in the Manning's recorded history, was too much for her. A large section of the deck of the bridge has collapsed and washed away.
Half of her is missing.
Residents first became aware of the damage when Wingham local, Brett Godwin, posted drone footage and photographs on the town's Facebook page.
While the waters still covered what was left of the bridge on Saturday morning, May 24, 2025, it was plain to see that something was clearly not right.
The bridge appears to have broken off at the Wingham entrance to the bridge.
As of Saturday afternoon, people on the Wingham side were heading to the town's tennis courts, which sits high on the banks overlooking the river, to see the damage for themselves.
Surf Life Saving NSW members from Newcastle and Pacific Palms were also at the viewing spot with an IRB (inflatable rescue boat), doing surveillance on the bridge for MidCoast Council.
The Manning River Times contacted MidCoast Council on Saturday morning regarding the Bight Bridge. However, as flood waters still cover what is left of the bridge and mud, silt and debris block the Tinonee end of the bridge, the council has not yet been able to assess the situation.
What is clear is that the people of Tinonee will have no quick access to Wingham for at least a few years to come, and it will cost many millions of dollars to reconstruct the bridge.
Construction of The Bight Bridge began in 1962 and completed in December 1962. It was officially opened on April 11, 1964.
The bridge was engineered to withstand flooding. It was made of pre-stressed concrete, with collapsible handrails on the downriver side. These rails were lowered in times of flooding to allow debris to wash over the bridge, allowing it to withstand much stress on the structure.
A pathway enabled pedestrian access on the side with the rails, from where local children were often seen fishing.
Prior to the bridge's existence, a punt operated over the river at that site from 1906.
As the Manning River slowly starts to subside revealing the damage down by the historic floods, residents of the Mid-Coast were shocked to learn that the vital link between the two towns has been destroyed.
The Bight Bridge, which connects the towns of Wingham and Tinonee, is no stranger to floods. She has withstood many, many inundations since being built in 1963.
But this flood, the biggest and most devastating in the Manning's recorded history, was too much for her. A large section of the deck of the bridge has collapsed and washed away.
Half of her is missing.
Residents first became aware of the damage when Wingham local, Brett Godwin, posted drone footage and photographs on the town's Facebook page.
While the waters still covered what was left of the bridge on Saturday morning, May 24, 2025, it was plain to see that something was clearly not right.
The bridge appears to have broken off at the Wingham entrance to the bridge.
As of Saturday afternoon, people on the Wingham side were heading to the town's tennis courts, which sits high on the banks overlooking the river, to see the damage for themselves.
Surf Life Saving NSW members from Newcastle and Pacific Palms were also at the viewing spot with an IRB (inflatable rescue boat), doing surveillance on the bridge for MidCoast Council.
The Manning River Times contacted MidCoast Council on Saturday morning regarding the Bight Bridge. However, as flood waters still cover what is left of the bridge and mud, silt and debris block the Tinonee end of the bridge, the council has not yet been able to assess the situation.
What is clear is that the people of Tinonee will have no quick access to Wingham for at least a few years to come, and it will cost many millions of dollars to reconstruct the bridge.
Construction of The Bight Bridge began in 1962 and completed in December 1962. It was officially opened on April 11, 1964.
The bridge was engineered to withstand flooding. It was made of pre-stressed concrete, with collapsible handrails on the downriver side. These rails were lowered in times of flooding to allow debris to wash over the bridge, allowing it to withstand much stress on the structure.
A pathway enabled pedestrian access on the side with the rails, from where local children were often seen fishing.
Prior to the bridge's existence, a punt operated over the river at that site from 1906.
As the Manning River slowly starts to subside revealing the damage down by the historic floods, residents of the Mid-Coast were shocked to learn that the vital link between the two towns has been destroyed.
The Bight Bridge, which connects the towns of Wingham and Tinonee, is no stranger to floods. She has withstood many, many inundations since being built in 1963.
But this flood, the biggest and most devastating in the Manning's recorded history, was too much for her. A large section of the deck of the bridge has collapsed and washed away.
Half of her is missing.
Residents first became aware of the damage when Wingham local, Brett Godwin, posted drone footage and photographs on the town's Facebook page.
While the waters still covered what was left of the bridge on Saturday morning, May 24, 2025, it was plain to see that something was clearly not right.
The bridge appears to have broken off at the Wingham entrance to the bridge.
As of Saturday afternoon, people on the Wingham side were heading to the town's tennis courts, which sits high on the banks overlooking the river, to see the damage for themselves.
Surf Life Saving NSW members from Newcastle and Pacific Palms were also at the viewing spot with an IRB (inflatable rescue boat), doing surveillance on the bridge for MidCoast Council.
The Manning River Times contacted MidCoast Council on Saturday morning regarding the Bight Bridge. However, as flood waters still cover what is left of the bridge and mud, silt and debris block the Tinonee end of the bridge, the council has not yet been able to assess the situation.
What is clear is that the people of Tinonee will have no quick access to Wingham for at least a few years to come, and it will cost many millions of dollars to reconstruct the bridge.
Construction of The Bight Bridge began in 1962 and completed in December 1962. It was officially opened on April 11, 1964.
The bridge was engineered to withstand flooding. It was made of pre-stressed concrete, with collapsible handrails on the downriver side. These rails were lowered in times of flooding to allow debris to wash over the bridge, allowing it to withstand much stress on the structure.
A pathway enabled pedestrian access on the side with the rails, from where local children were often seen fishing.
Prior to the bridge's existence, a punt operated over the river at that site from 1906.
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