Carbon County officials plan to look into security cameras for a historic bridge in Lower Towamensing Township that has been the site of several hit and run incidents.

The covered bridge, located in the area of Lower Smith Gap and Little Gap roads, has been damaged several times, with the most recent time being the height restriction bar installed before the bridge to stop vehicles that are over the height limit from crossing and damaging the wooden structure.

The most recent incident is believed to have occurred between 10 and 11 a.m. Tuesday, Lower Towamensing Township road foreman Robin Cressley said.

Cressley said some sort of big truck is believed to have hit the headache bar and broken all the link chains off, forcing the township to close the road and detour traffic for some time.

“It was laying on the ground,” Cressley said. “We had to repair all the linkage and reinstall the headache bar.”

Cressley added that the scenario typically “happens a couple times a year.”

Commissioner Rocky Ahner said Tuesday afternoon that the damage probably cost about $500 because each of the bolts that were damaged cost approximately $90 to replace.

“You have to get special bolts because of the way the I-beam is tapered,” he said. “You need special washers and nuts.”

Ahner said that whoever struck the bar had to be going pretty fast to rip the bolts and bar off the I-beam.

“If the headache bar wasn’t there, it would have damaged the bridge,” Cressley said. “It’s a good thing it was there; it did it’s job.”

Ahner said that last week, he was at the bridge when he and another county employee witnessed a construction-type truck try to cross the bridge and struck the bar before continuing through the bridge.

Because of where they were, Ahner said they couldn’t get a license plate number before the person left the scene.

That incident, as well as Tuesday’s and all the previous vehicles ignoring the height limit of the historic bridge are now making the commissioners rethink security there.

Ahner said that in the coming weeks, officials will be looking at installing some type of security cameras to try and help catch individuals who ignore the height limits and possibly damage the bridge or the bars leading up to the bridge.

He noted that there is a fine if someone is caught and they would also be responsible for paying for the damage.

“We’re looking into things,” Ahner said. “We have to do something because you can’t close the bridge just because people hit it once a month. People use that bridge and it is in good shape.

“You can’t take it away from the public because there are people who depend on that bridge to go over the mountain or come home.”

He added that this has to stop because while right now, there has been minimal damage to the bridge and beams, what happens if someone hits the bridge and debris comes down and then another vehicle or motorcycle comes by after that.

“Somebody could get killed,” Ahner said. “I think people have to realize that maybe within the next week or so, we’re going to get cameras up there and they’re going to be prosecuted.”