Watch Where You Walk on the Longfellow

We here at Boston Daily don’t have any degrees in engineering. The most advanced thing we’ve ever built was a Lego castle. But we must say that we’re having some serious doubts about the structural integrity of the Longfellow Bridge.

This weekend, the Globe reported that an independent investigation revealed the bridge is in an even worse state that originally thought, but DCR officials reiterated that we shouldn’t worry.

DCR engineers believe that, while many of the Longfellow’s steel parts are deteriorating, the bridge itself is secure because of the way it is built. The bridge is supported by so many different structural elements that it can withstand the deterioration or loss of many parts without threat of collapse, officials said.

Oh really? Then why is the Cambridge Chronicle reporting that cars, pedestrians, or both may need to be prohibited on July 4?

“What they’re concerned about is the large number of people standing on the sidewalks all at one time,” said state Rep. Marty Walz, who has been closely following long-term renovation plans for the bridge. “The sidewalks could eventually fall off the side of the bridge.”

Again, we’re not engineers. But that does not sound safe. The fact that the DCR has to even test the span to make sure it can handle the throngs of tourists on Boston’s biggest holiday is deeply unsettling.

Cambridge City Councilor Craig Kelley calmly explains the doomsday scenario.

“You wouldn’t want thousands of people plunging into the Charles River. That would be terrible.”

Indeed, Councilor Kelley. Indeed.