Old Tappan Zee Bridge Debris Washes Ashore Along Banks of New York Town

After many watched in awe as part of the old Tappan Zee was demolished Tuesday, splashing down into the Hudson River, debris began to wash up along the banks.

A video showed scraps and parts of what used to be the bridge washing along the rocky shoreline of Irvington, New York, in the same area where many went to see the bridge come down.

Hours after demolition, resident Liam Hatch said he saw remnants of the bridge start washing up ashore, near Matthiessen Park.

"The whole river was saturated with junk," he said, adding that the debris came in all shapes and sizes, with some being as large as the size of a door. 

"Masks, googles, buckets, planks of wood, even pieces of metal floating throughout," Hatch recalled.

Keeping the discovery to himself, he initially shared his video of the debris on social media, eventually getting the town's attention, along with countless other angry residents wondering why their shoreline looked more like a demolition site.

The Village of Irvington eventually tweeted: "The contractors on the bridge are well aware that it is their responsibility to clean it up and they're doing it right now. We are overseeing things to make sure it's down right."

Thursday morning, Chopper 4 spotted crews cleaning the shoreline piece by piece and fishing other bridge debris from the water. 

Residents are now urged to call the town's recreational department if they find any more debris so that bridge officials can be contacted. 

The shoreline now looks like a shoreline and the only place one will find pieces of the old bridge is in the water, where it was supposed to stay. 

"Definitely compared to the other day, it looks a lot better," Hatch said. "I haven't checked the cove or anything down there, but I'm sure it's a lot better."