Countries connected: Meet the people working on the Gordie Howe bridge
CBC
On any single day, more than 2,000 people are working on the Gordie Howe International Bridge site, ports of entry, and the Michigan interchange.
Around 42 per cent of the workforce are local to Windsor and Detroit. Meanwhile, workers from across the globe have come to complete the bridge, including Ireland, Italy, Germany, Brazil, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, India and more.
The bridge has been under construction since 2018, with its opening currently slated for September 2025.
As Windsorites await the completion of this massive project, here's a look at some of those making the project a reality.
Name: Jaime Castro
Where: Columbia and Germany
What: Bridge construction lead engineer
"I've had the opportunity to be in many countries in Europe working in similar projects," Castro said. "I went to [the] Middle East, working a couple of countries in the Middle East, and then I moved to Asia. I worked in a couple of countries in Asia, [and also] in South Africa. So I've been in South America, as well in Central America, and I'm here in North America."
By anyone's standards Castro is a world traveller. Raised in Colombia and Germany, before studying civil engineering, his long career has led him to working in Windsor.
"Some people go chasing waterfalls, so I go chasing these type of bridges, and this will be the biggest international bridge in the world."
Name: Axel Habiyakare
Where: Windsor
What: Lead field engineer
Habiyakare is responsible for the construction activities on the approach part of the bridge — leading from the Canadian port of entry to the anchor pier where the 420-metre cables begin.
While his party has made a cause célèbre out of its battle with the Speaker, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has periodically waxed poetic about the House of Commons — suggesting that its green upholstery is meant to symbolize the fields of the English countryside where commoners met centuries ago before the signing of the Magna Carta.