Photo by Scott McCloskey A worker with North Star Painting of Youngstown, Ohio, is pictured installing part of the containment system on the Fort Henry Bridge in Wheeling this week as preparations are being made to paint the superstructure in the coming weeks.

WHEELING — Fort Henry Bridge is going to lose its two-toned look.

North Star Painting Company of Youngstown, Ohio, has been assembling cables and brackets as part of the massive “containment system” on the bridges’ archway. Crews are scheduled to begin sandblasting and painting the south side of the superstructure once the containment system is completely in place, according to West Virginia Division of Highways Area Engineer Mike Witherow.

The work is all part of the ongoing I-70 Bridges Project in Ohio County.

Once the I-70 eastbound lane was shifted onto the westbound side of the bridge last week, Withrow said North Star crews were able to begin putting the brackets and cables that hold the containment system in place throughout the sandblasting and painting process. While the westbound (north) side of the bridge arch was painted a bright royal blue hue last summer, the eastbound (south) side has remained a faded green color.

“We just put both directions (of I-70) over on the westbound side of the structure through the truss, and now we’re to that point they can move forward with the containment and begin the painting process,” Witherow explained. “So once they get their containment in place and everything sealed off, then they will go to work immediately and start cleaning the steel.”

Pending the weather conditions, Witherow expects the actual painting to begin sometime over the next few weeks and last a month or two.

“It’s all weather contingent, you have to have good conditions for that type of work,” he said.

The closure of the I-70 East off-ramp from the Fort Henry Bridge to Main Street in downtown Wheeling was postponed this summer. Witherow said the closure of the Main Street off-ramp is tentatively scheduled to take place sometime after the Labor Day holiday, but is contingent on the completion of other construction activities.