Les Dungan, county engineer, gave the Pearl River Conty Board of Supervisors an eight-week minimum for the completion of the George-Ford Bridge project at the June 21 meeting.

The project is funded by the state of Mississippi and was made a top priority, said Dungan.

In previous coverage, Dungan said the bid accepted to replace the bridge came in at a $293,161 from Pearl River Paving Company.

The road was officially closed on April 4, according to a sign posted at the end of the street.

The bottom slab has been poured, said Dungan at the June 21 meeting.

The timeline of the project consists of two weeks to pour the ready-mix concrete, three weeks for the concrete to cure, and three weeks for the embankment to be replaced, said Dungan.

By this estimate, the bridge should be complete in eight weeks, around the middle of August.

“It is strictly a drainage structure fix,” said Dungan.

The old rotten timber is being replaced with a concrete box bridge structure and a short portion of the roadway will also be repaved, said Dungan.

According to previous coverage, the initial estimate to complete the project was 60 days.

The old bridge was rated at 5 tons, but the new bridge is said to be able to handle 80,000 pounds, or 40 tons.