Taconite Harbor, MN (KROC AM News) - An emergency project began Thursday on a busy and popular northern Minnesota highway in hopes of having it ready for the holiday weekend.

A truck with an oversized load struck a railroad bridge that crosses over Highway 61 near Taconite Harbor Thursday. MNDOT officials decided to have the bridge removed for safety reasons and brought in a contractor. This led to a closure of Highway 61 and a detour of nearly 30 miles.

The site is about an hour north of Duluth.

MNDOT hopes to have the inactive bridge removed Friday so the project won’t affect North Shore traffic during the busy Labor Day weekend.

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