Milton Drawbridge Opens For Tugboat And Barge [:42 VIDEO]

I was having a conversation with a friend the other day, and something she said struck me as odd: she has never been "caught" at a drawbridge.

Granted, she is a few years younger than me, but I still found it odd. With as many bayous and canals as we have here in South Louisiana, I thought that I would be hard-pressed to find someone who had never been held up at an open (or closed) bridge.

I was on my way to Abbeville last Friday to meet up with some classmates when I saw the red lights come on. I stopped at the gate and took out my phone:

The big cement blocks that lower are the counter-weights that help the motors lift the drawbridge (all of that metal is heavy; the counter-weights help balance out the load for the motors).

The original video was just under 5 minutes which, in today's age of now now now me me me seems like an eternity but , in reality, is a really quick turn-around once you think about it.

By the way, when the bridge is in a position to allow a boat to pass, do you say that the bridge is "open" or do you say that the bridge is "closed"? I've heard it both ways, and still get confused!