minneapolis bridge collapse

[Danzig]

seems the bridge was bumper to bumper, and a train passed underneath at the same time...construction work had been ongoing, but supposedly not anything having to do with weight bearing. the bridge had been inspected in '05, and was found to be structurally deficient, scoring a 50 out of 120. i think this will be a case of old bridge, more traffic than it was built to withstand at the time of construction, and most likely with materials that wouldn't be used in this day and age, and then add in bumper to bumper with a full load sitting on the bridge. too much at one time, catastrophic failure.

[ArlJim78]

Originally Posted by Danzig

seems the bridge was bumper to bumper, and a train passed underneath at the same time...construction work had been ongoing, but supposedly not anything having to do with weight bearing. the bridge had been inspected in '05, and was found to be structurally deficient, scoring a 50 out of 120. i think this will be a case of old bridge, more traffic than it was built to withstand at the time of construction, and most likely with materials that wouldn't be used in this day and age, and then add in bumper to bumper with a full load sitting on the bridge. too much at one time, catastrophic failure.

I think in addition to that, we're going to find out that this was not a good design, and I think that is the key point.

[Danzig]

Originally Posted by ArlJim78

I think in addition to that, we're going to find out that this was not a good design, and I think that is the key point.

yeah, that caught my eye, the over 400 foot long span so as to not impede river traffic. way back when, that might fly--but like i said, it's forty years later, a hell of a lot more traffic than what they planned for back then. i'd imagine that it will come out that this is a flaw in engineering design.

it was something i noticed when the kids and i drove to churchill....a lot more traffic on interstates than in 'the old days'. two lanes each way doesnt' cut it anymore. have seen write ups lately about our infrastructure nationwide, that it's outdated, and that we need to get moving. this bridge failure is a tragic way to underscore that.