[Goose]

Does anyone have any idea how long the damage will impede the flow of manpower and supplies to the Russian Forces in Kehrson?  Some reports already have them stretched pretty thin in this regard.  It could make a new Ukrainian attack more effective.

Short term, not much effect. Long term probably depends on how long the railway is out. If no trains for a week, that would make a BIG difference. It is also probable that there will be speed restrictions after the damage is repaired.

Also for any engineers, was the fire possibly hot enough to have a significant impact on the structural integrity of the railroad bridge.  Some reports say Russians don't have enough trucks or drivers to resupply by road and absolutely have to have the railroad running.

No way to know if the bridge structure was damaged. Probably it was not, but it is not impossible. I would expect the tracks may have to be replaced as the fire probably warped them. I assume the ties are concrete. If they are not, they will probably need replacement. I expect the railway will not be out of action long, probably a day or so.

Rail transport moves freight much more economically (per ton/mile) than road transport. This is especially true of bulk commodities like fuel. The US would collapse in short order if the western transcons went down for very long. Moving very heavy items like tanks and very wide items is also much easier by rail. While Russia's army does lack drivers and trucks relative to say the US army, no army likes to fight without rail transport as a "backbone". When they are forced to do so, logistics always becomes a serious problem, from north Africa in WW II to Iraq recently.

Crimea brings the added problem that it's significant population relies on rail transport to bring in the daily necessities. That is why Russia so quickly spent so much money to build that bridge immediately after they annexed Crimea. The "land bridge" wasn't available then because Ukraine wouldn't let them use it. It isn't available now, because Ukraine controls the railway by fire. Crimea can be supplied by sea, but it is much more expensive and quite a bit slower. Loading and unloading ships takes time and Russia didn't develop any big container ports in Crimea. Russia needs that railway big time.

[Goose]

Does anyone have any idea how long the damage will impede the flow of manpower and supplies to the Russian Forces in Kehrson?  Some reports already have them stretched pretty thin in this regard.  It could make a new Ukrainian attack more effective.

Short term, not much effect. Long term probably depends on how long the railway is out. If no trains for a week, that would make a BIG difference. It is also probable that there will be speed restrictions after the damage is repaired.

Also for any engineers, was the fire possibly hot enough to have a significant impact on the structural integrity of the railroad bridge.  Some reports say Russians don't have enough trucks or drivers to resupply by road and absolutely have to have the railroad running.

No way to know if the bridge structure was damaged. Probably it was not, but it is not impossible. I would expect the tracks may have to be replaced as the fire probably warped them. I assume the ties are concrete. If they are not, they will probably need replacement. I expect the railway will not be out of action long, probably a day or so.

Rail transport moves freight much more economically (per ton/mile) than road transport. This is especially true of bulk commodities like fuel. The US would collapse in short order if the western transcons went down for very long. Moving very heavy items like tanks and very wide items is also much easier by rail. While Russia's army does lack drivers and trucks relative to say the US army, no army likes to fight without rail transport as a "backbone". When they are forced to do so, logistics always becomes a serious problem, from north Africa in WW II to Iraq recently.

Crimea brings the added problem that it's significant population relies on rail transport to bring in the daily necessities. That is why Russia so quickly spent so much money to build that bridge immediately after they annexed Crimea. The "land bridge" wasn't available then because Ukraine wouldn't let them use it. It isn't available now, because Ukraine controls the railway by fire. Crimea can be supplied by sea, but it is much more expensive and quite a bit slower. Loading and unloading ships takes time and Russia didn't develop any big container ports in Crimea. Russia needs that railway big time.