Is there anything they could have done over the years to prevent this from happening, or was the design/construction so bad that collapse was inevitable?
Apparently, there was some warning that the bridge was failing because there are amateur videos showing roadway gaps and uplift followed by the actual collapse. Be careful when searching because there's a suspension bridge (which didn't collapse) that has the same or very similar name...
It's open again, and with little evidence of the collapse ever happening.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfSWl6svm7Y About halfway through the video is something about what caused the collapse.
I wonder if the engineers will consider the effects of climate change when designing the replacement bridge. The latest sea level rise map shows the harbor having serious water issues by 2050. And NOAA says their map may be a little low. Rebuilding the bridge will take a few years (the...
I snagged this picture off a news broadcast last week. It's an incredible mess they're dealing with, and it looks like the bow was just abraded away in the collision. That big block of concrete must be part of the bridge support. I'm surprised to see such a clean break on something so massive.
Do you suppose they'll scrap the Dali after this mishap? There's a chunk of the bow missing above the waterline, likely damage below the waterline, exposure to the horrendous stress of the collision, and a huge black cloud of bad luck hanging over the ship.
This article in the Daily Mail and a similar one in Daily beast caught my eye, but I'm not sure how reliable these reports might be.
Dali cargo ship suffered 'severe electrical problem' while docked in Baltimore days prior to bridge collapse crash that saw it suffer 'total power failure...
I just watched this video which reports the cracked support had been welded several weeks before the viral video was made. shortly after 1:45 in
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLGHNK3ePko
Elsewhere in the video a company official says the crack could be the result of steel weakening over...
I didn't specify the thickness or length of the sleeve or the size and placement of the plug welds. I knew they would work out the details.
Who knows...they may be incorporating a similar sleeve arrangement in the replacement column assembly. It's pretty obvious the original design didn't...
Not that it matters now, but I've come up with a way to repair the broken support that is reasonably easy and will look exactly like the original build.
1. Using whatever means are necessary, pull the broken parts back into alignment, V out the joint, and weld it up.
2. Cut a hole in the plate...
They must be struggling to find an acceptable repair, and the butt-ugly temporary splice plates were just too noticeable. Better to hide the crack while they figure out what to do.
I'd like to know how the failed joint was originally made. I'm guessing the vertical pipe was notched to let the...
It appears from the video that the cars are going up and then going down as they pass the support. That's going to create a lifting effect that reduces the contact pressure between the broken parts which allows them to slip sideways more easily. I wonder if looseness in the nearby bolted joint...
The places that looked iffy earlier now look fine. I think sgw1009 must be correct about it being artifacts of the video feed. Thanks for the explanation.
I looked at the live feed on my tablet where I can easily zoom in for a closer view. It's not encouraging. The edges of the asphalt appear to be breaking up where it meets the concrete in the places where the tires run most of the time. The worst places are several inches wide and deep and...
We're about to find out how well it'll perform. They just had the reopening ceremony at the construction site, and traffic will soon start flowing with no additional weight restrictions.
Let's investigate setting up a GoFundMe page to buy PENNDOT a decent camera and related equipment for their...
I just saw the painting truck go by applying the last of the lane markings. I watched several work trucks go by, too. People driving standard full-size pickups should be pretty comfortable as long as they're not sandwiched between two big rigs. For someone like me who hasn't driven on an...
Sweeping means they're getting ready for lane marking. I wonder how far back the transitioning from six to three lanes will begin, and if there will be any limitations on vehicle weight. I'm guessing they'll set the speed limit at 45 for the narrowest part, but enforcement will be very difficult.
