(Radio Iowa) – The future of a rural Plymouth County bridge south of Struble that collapsed last week under the weight of a semi load of round hay bales remains in doubt. Mark Utesch farms land on both sides of the bridge, and thinks it may not be rebuilt.

“How you could see, potentially, depending on what kind of funds are available, you know, with the county and the state, how they might handle this bridge, if it’s an inconvenient factor for just a few people, you know, it might be considered not worth replacing. So if I had to think about who’s the most impacted by this bridge, I’m the guy,” he says. Utesch says he went around the bridge with heavy loads.

“This particular bridge is only rated for about 24 ton, so a loaded truck and trailer, or a heavier piece machine like a combine, I have to go a mile to the north, north, and then I come through Struble, and then I come a mile to the south, and then I go over this bridge that’s right next to us to go around,” Utesch says. “So I already have the extra couple miles of travel for with my heavier and wide equipment.”

The semi driver was not hurt in the bridge collapse. The truck has been pulled from the scene while a number of round bales that were on the truck remain.