UPDATE: I-20 westbound at the Wateree River has reopened after repairs and testing.
KERSHAW COUNTY, S.C. -- The emergency repairs on a major bridge on Interstate 20 in Kershaw County could be done sooner than expected, just in time for the final rush of Christmas holiday travelers.
The bridge at the Wateree River in the highway's westbound lanes was shut down Thursday after South Carolina Department of Transportation officials said it settled, lowering it several inches. That raised concerns with SCDOT officials, who immediately shut the bridge down to try to fix the problem.
Initially, it was believed the repairs might take several days, but SCDOT Secretary Christy Hall said Friday that the work could be done by Saturday morning. Crews are working to jack up the bridge.
"That will be a complicated process it will take a little bit of time to do that, " Hall said. "Once we get that done we will make repairs, and then hopefully we can reopen the bridge [Saturday] morning sometime," Hall said.
The closure has halted traffic and diverted drivers like Puncho Carter, who are coming in Friday from the town of Rembert in Sumter County.
"I'm just taking my time and trying to get there. It's a slow process, but it's going," he said.
A detour in place takes commuters like Carter from I-20 westbound to get off at exit 98 in Camden. They then turn left on Erinclaw Road, then left again off 601, and then will get back onto I-20 at Exit 92.
"The traffic is backed up, but as long as you take your time, it wasn't that bad," Carter said. "It's moving but not that fast."
Lisa Murray works at Toppers Hair Design. Her shop is in the middle of the traffic on Highway 601 in Lugoff.
"We've never seen traffic this bad, I'd never thought we'd have I-20 coming through our front door," Murray said.
She said the traffic halted not the roads but their business.
"Our work, it's been slow; we've had people cancel, and our older clients are just terrified to get in it," she said.
While it's impacted business, she hopes the bridge reopens safely
"I hope this is over soon; I hope it's not a band-aid fix; I'm hoping it's really safe because it's scary," she said.
SCDOT expects to provide further updates on Saturday morning.