When Chad Brealey got the call from the IronworkerB次元官网网址檚 Union (local 97) to join the team charged with assembling the components and building the new Johnson Street Bridge, he had no idea of the controversy that had dogged the project.

Nor did he have a sense of its significance to the community. Once he arrived in Victoria in early September, though, that all changed.

B次元官网网址淲hen I got here it didnB次元官网网址檛 take long to realize this was a very important project. ItB次元官网网址檚 an iconic structure thatB次元官网网址檚 replacing a bridge that was, itself, an iconic structure,B次元官网网址� Brealey said. B次元官网网址淲e have a special responsibility to do this work and leave the city with something to be proud of.B次元官网网址�

B次元官网网址淧eople would find out I was working on the bridge and they would be asking me all kinds of questions about where we were at on it, when it would open, why it was taking so long. They were very engaged about this bridge and it was obviously something they felt strongly about.B次元官网网址�

Since arriving, Brealey has worked 12 hours a day, seven days a week. He and his fellow ironworkers are hard at it in all kinds of weather and the work never stops. B次元官网网址淲e run two shifts, so weB次元官网网址檙e pretty much at it 24 hours a day. Every once in a while we take a day to do our laundry.B次元官网网址�

And make no mistake about it, this is hard, technically challenging work.

B次元官网网址淚 was involved in line-boring the holes for the rack, in the rack and pinion portion of the lifting structure of the bridge. We had to machine those holes to 1/300,000th of a millimeter or the whole thing would be done. You donB次元官网网址檛 get a second chance to do it right,B次元官网网址� he said.

B次元官网网址淚 wasnB次元官网网址檛 nervous about the job, but it sure made you focus.B次元官网网址�

Despite the long hours and sometimes meticulous and stressful work, Brealey spoke about the project with an obvious sense of pride.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 not often you get to work on something like this. ItB次元官网网址檚 an iconic structure and weB次元官网网址檙e all very proud to be a part of it. ItB次元官网网址檚 the sort of thing where, in years to come, IB次元官网网址檒l be bringing my children and grandchildren to this place and telling them how I helped to build it. ThatB次元官网网址檚 a pretty great feeling.B次元官网网址�

Kevin Thiemer came to the project via a different route, through the apprenticeship program operated by the IronworkerB次元官网网址檚 Union (local 97). After finishing his first year of studies at the B.C. Institute of Technology, he is working on his annual practicum for the three-year program.

Unlike a lot of his peers, his exposure to the practical side of his studies is unique in that heB次元官网网址檚 involved with one of the most complex and iconic public works projects in B.C.B次元官网网址檚 recent history.

B次元官网网址淢y uncle was an ironworker and he used to take us kids out and point to different buildings and say B次元官网网址業 helped build thatB次元官网网址� and he was always very proud of what heB次元官网网址檇 done. I know now how he felt,B次元官网网址� said Thiemer. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 amazing to be a part of something like this.B次元官网网址�

He went on to praise the team of ironworkers employed on the project, describing them as knowledgeable and enthusiastic in their work.

B次元官网网址淚 get to work with this incredible, proud group of guys who have done this tremendously wide range of work. TheyB次元官网网址檝e taken me under their wing and taught me so much about the work. I really canB次元官网网址檛 say enough good things about them.B次元官网网址�

As an apprentice, Thiemer has been sent wherever additional manpower is needed and as such, heB次元官网网址檚 been involved with virtually every aspect of the bridge construction.

When he first got to town, the span had just arrived from China and he was on a team building the outriggers and stringers to allow the unit to be moved into position.

B次元官网网址淪ince then IB次元官网网址檝e worked on the rings in the yard and helped during the big lift of the rings onto the span,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檝e bolted up the counterweight and helped load up the counterweight, and in that process IB次元官网网址檝e had the chance to use specialized equipment that I might never otherwise have had a chance to use.B次元官网网址�

More than anything, Thiemer said heB次元官网网址檚 been impressed by the calibre of the workers who are on the ground creating the bridge from component parts.

And when the work is done and he goes back to BCIT for his second year of training, he said heB次元官网网址檒l remember the lessons learned on the Johnson Street Bridge, and look back on his experience with pride.

For a collection of stories about the Johnson Street Bridge, .