Large Taiwan bridge collapses from earthquake

[BridgeSmith]

Gaoliao Bridge in Hualien County, Taiwan collapses from earthquake

Preliminary quake magnitude, depending on the source, was either a 6.4 or 6.8, or somewhere in between.

As I watched the video, there did not seem to be much reinforcing hanging out of the broken pier shafts.

Rod Smith, P.E., The artist formerly known as HotRod10

 

[OHIOMatt]

The column failures look very similar to Loma Prieta. I would agree, that reinforcing or lack thereof was a culprit. I know nothing of the building standards in Taiwan, but I would be interested to know when the bridge was originally constructed.

 

[BridgeSmith]

I didn't do alot of looking, but I haven't found any background information for the bridge yet.

Rod Smith, P.E., The artist formerly known as HotRod10

 

[hokie66]

The collapse of that viaduct looks eerily similar to the collapse of the Hanchin Expressway in Kobe, Japan in 1995. Those single column, hammerhead supports are not my favorite.