An  inspection was carried out on Monday after a report was received about an apparent anomaly with one of the columns. The inspection showed that four of the 37 support columns on the bridge over the River Christina are as much as 4% out of vertical alignment.

Bridge 1-813 has a 1,460m-long concrete deck on steel beams and was built in 1974.

Preliminary analysis by Aecom, DelDOT's bridge design consultant, shows the bridge can bear its own weight, but could exceed capacity under a full traffic load.

Monitoring and investigations are under way and design options are being reviewed to rectify the problem and reopen the bridge.