KWCH 12 Eyewitness News Alana Rocha  Tuesday, February 14, 2006.

Engineers take a look at the damage done on an I-70 bridge overpass. An excavator tore a hole into the bridge after the truck hauling the machine hit the overpass near Hays and got stuck.

Troopers say the driver, Michael Conley, did not have a permit to haul the oversized load on the interstate. If the driver had applied for a permit, it would have outlined the safest route to take. I-70 would not have been on Conley's route because of the overpasses.

He was eastbound when he hit roughly two to three feet up onto the bridge. That's what caused the boom to swing back and puncture through the deck.

No one was hurt. Drivers have to take a three mile detour around Hays.

Kevin Zimmer is the Kansas Department of Transportation Area Engineer. "We do not want to remove the excavator or trailer until its deemed safe to actually do that."

Bridge engineers from Topeka will determine whether the bridge can be repaired or has to be replaced. It's not clear when traffic will return to normal.