Minneapolis Bridge Collapse

[llamster]

I've been on that bridge before, luckily not on the day of the collapse \

[killersushipunk]

How will I get to church? :ohnoes:

[Lemeja]

My stepfather was on the bridge and he's now in the hospital... :( .

 

 

 

Nothing serious.

[Roberthree]

I was taking a truckload of cars over this bridge about 2 hours before this happened. Thank god for being early.

[Giordano]

The constructionmen who built that should be executed. The guy with the plans burnt on fire.

 

 

 

or... maybe jail's enough.

 

 

Do you relise how stupid you sound? Architects are not murders who build solely for killing... :roll: If anything blame the circumstances of *gasp* Do I dare to say it? Natural events!!! *Z0mg* Yes, natural events can collaspe a bridge. Cracks by small earthquakes, gravel under the bridge turning soft after heavy rains, winds, etc...

 

 

 

I hope those injured recover quickly and those few who died to rest in peace.

[Lemeja]

The constructionmen who built that should be executed. The guy with the plans burnt on fire.

 

 

 

or... maybe jail's enough.

 

 

Do you relise how stupid you sound? Architects are not murders who build solely for killing... :roll: If anything blame the circumstances of *gasp* Do I dare to say it? Natural events!!! *Z0mg* Yes, natural events can collaspe a bridge. Cracks by small earthquakes, gravel under the bridge turning soft after heavy rains, winds, etc...

 

 

 

I hope those injured recover quickly and those few who died to rest in peace.

 

 

 

I agree with you but the thing is, not many of those things can happen in Minnesota. The only reason I can think of that it collapsed was that there was too much weight on it, with the bridge not having supports, or maybe one of the machines that were working on the bridge at the time accidentally broke something?

[indy500fan]

For the curious: video

[Oy_the_Great]

Well I've already heard 2 tip.iters mention they were nearly on that bridge the minute it happened, I'm glad they're both OK. Tigra is one of them, the other is one of the arenascape guys, who also made a topic about it in the mini-community here of AS: http://forum.tip.it/viewtopic.php?t=684747

 

 

 

I've heard on the Belgian news that 200,000 cars cross it daily on work days. Good thing it's holidays then.

[Ginger_Warrior]

There was actually a bridge some decades ago that was brand new that ended up collapsing. The way bridges are constructed (although they've worked hard to rectify this since then), the right combination of factors (temperature, wind, etc) can cause air waves to vibrate at the bridge's natural frequency, which causes the whole thing to shake violently and eventually collapse.

 

 

 

I was watching CNN and an eyewitness said that the thing had started shaking like so and collapsed shortly thereafter.

 

 

 

Dunno if it's the case here or not, but I wouldn't blame the construction team/architect as much as the state board that certified the bridge. There are pretty stringent standards for bridge inspections so I'd be surprised if this is something they could prevent.

 

Agreed. There's no doubt in my mind that the architect isn't to blame considering that bridge was in use for some 40 years before this incident. I'm not too sure how US politics works at a local level, but the bridge was examined last year and was reported as fine. However, in 2001, a report was released which said corrosive metal may have an effect on the strength of the structure, although it didn't say if the bridge could be described as "fatigued" from this. The fact that this warning was ignored would certainly point at ignorance from the local authorities IMO...

[Abelmisi]

The constructionmen who built that should be executed. The guy with the plans burnt on fire.

 

 

 

or... maybe jail's enough.

 

 

Do you relise how stupid you sound? Architects are not murders who build solely for killing... :roll: If anything blame the circumstances of *gasp* Do I dare to say it? Natural events!!! *Z0mg* Yes, natural events can collaspe a bridge. Cracks by small earthquakes, gravel under the bridge turning soft after heavy rains, winds, etc...

 

 

 

 

Do you realize there are people who are in charge of making a sure a bridge does not collapse even because of natural events? By fixing that bridge in time, none of this would have happened. So who's in charge? Mr. Natural Conditions?

[Tigra00]

Uhh, I don't know how to describe it...Like I said, the damn thing just crashed down. I mean, it's not something you see everyday...I guess I was dumb-struck. :lol: My uncle and I just sat there like :shock:, it was really weird. I wanted to go to down and help people but everyone started backing up so we had to follow suit...By the time I was like "Dude, we should go down there and help incase some cars fell down there..." (we didn't see if anyone was on the bridge or not at the time), a state trooper had already arrived and was telling us all to GTFO his Interstatez, basically.

 

 

 

I dunno', just too weird to really describe. It literally just fell the [bleep] down, nothing more to it. No warning, no shaking, no rumbling, nothing. Not that I heard anyways, and I was like 100 feet away with my windows down.

[Giordano]

The constructionmen who built that should be executed. The guy with the plans burnt on fire.

 

 

 

or... maybe jail's enough.

 

 

Do you relise how stupid you sound? Architects are not murders who build solely for killing... :roll: If anything blame the circumstances of *gasp* Do I dare to say it? Natural events!!! *Z0mg* Yes, natural events can collaspe a bridge. Cracks by small earthquakes, gravel under the bridge turning soft after heavy rains, winds, etc...

 

 

 

 

Do you realize there are people who are in charge of making a sure a bridge does not collapse even because of natural events? By fixing that bridge in time, none of this would have happened. So who's in charge? Mr. Natural Conditions?

 

Can you please read the few posts above you and see that it's been expected and it was in good condintion.

[Bloodredsword]

I'm in london and read about it in one of those free "gossip magazines"

 

 

 

Didn't believe it at first...:(

 

 

 

absolutely horrible :cry:

 

 

 

I feel really bad for the family's

[RSBDavid]

man that sucks.. ive heard rumors about it being 1 of many to come terrorist attacks

[Abelmisi]

The constructionmen who built that should be executed. The guy with the plans burnt on fire.

 

 

 

or... maybe jail's enough.

 

 

Do you relise how stupid you sound? Architects are not murders who build solely for killing... :roll: If anything blame the circumstances of *gasp* Do I dare to say it? Natural events!!! *Z0mg* Yes, natural events can collaspe a bridge. Cracks by small earthquakes, gravel under the bridge turning soft after heavy rains, winds, etc...

 

 

 

 

Do you realize there are people who are in charge of making a sure a bridge does not collapse even because of natural events? By fixing that bridge in time, none of this would have happened. So who's in charge? Mr. Natural Conditions?

 

Can you please read the few posts above you and see that it's been expected and it was in good condintion.

 

 

 

Okay, you win. I've been stupid sorry.

[Ginger_Warrior]

man that sucks.. ive heard rumors about it being 1 of many to come terrorist attacks

 

Terrorism was nothing to do with this. The police have already rules that one out.

[Abelmisi]

man that sucks.. ive heard rumors about it being 1 of many to come terrorist attacks

 

Terrorism was nothing to do with this. The police have already rules that one out.

 

 

 

I think he means it was one of the future targets of terrorists groups.

[goldphishies]

It's a shame, but not every structure is perfect. Think about it this way: It could of been the Golden Gate Bridge, or the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Either way, it's worse than this.

 

But this is still a shame, I feel really sorry for the families.

[Lemeja]

That video is really scary, you can actually see the cars falling. :shock:

[Tigra00]

man that sucks.. ive heard rumors about it being 1 of many to come terrorist attacks

 

Terrorism was nothing to do with this. The police have already rules that one out.

 

 

 

I think he means it was one of the future targets of terrorists groups.

 

 

 

No, he meant what he said, which was that he heard that this was a terrorist attack, and more will come.

 

 

 

Quit being stupid, people. Everytime ANYTHING remotely bad happens, people always go "Terrorism?!" like little lemmings. You guys remind me of those seaguls on that one movie..."Mine? Mine? Mine? Mine? Mine?", but rather, it's "Terrorism?! Terrorism?! Terrorism?! TERRORISM?!?!!"

 

 

 

At least Bush did his job well scary the [cabbage] out of people.

 

 

 

There are no terrorists. There are Muslim extremists who blow [cabbage] up. Nothing "terrifying" about them. They're cowards.

[jokemaster]

a few pics

 

 

 

1.

 

Shot at 2007-08-03

 

 

 

 

 

2.

 

Shot at 2007-08-03

 

 

 

 

 

3.

 

Shot at 2007-08-03

 

 

 

 

 

bridge~~info..

 

ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ãââ Structure ID: NBI: 9340.

 

ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ãââ Location: River Mile 853.20.

 

ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ãââ River Elevation: 725 Feet.

 

ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ãââ Highway: I-35W.

 

ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ãââ Daily Traffic Count: 140,000 (2002).

 

ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ãââ Bridge Type: Three Span Continuous Deck Truss Bridge.

 

ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ãââ Length: 1,907 Feet, 458 Foot Longest Span.

 

ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ãââ Width: 8 Traffic Lanes, 108 Feet.

 

ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ãââ Navigation Channel Width: 390 Feet.

 

ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ãââ Height Above Water: 64 Feet.

 

ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ãââ Date Built: Opened November 1967, Failed August 1, 2007

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Claim to fame: was built with a single 458 foot long steel arch to avoid putting any piers in the water to impede river navigation.

 

This bridge features an anti-ice system. A series of PVC pipes carries a deicer fluid to outlets that are drilled into the deck of the bridge. When the temperature for ice is right, the deicer fluid is pumped onto the bridge deck. This system has proven to be successful enough that it is being installed on other bridges in Minnesota.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The National Bridge Inventory contains a report on this bridge from 2003. It reports the following items:

 

 

 

Deck Condition: Fair.

 

Superstructure Condition: Poor.

 

Substructure Condition: Satisfactory.

 

Scour: Foundations determined to be stable.

 

Bridge Railings: Meets currently acceptable standards.

 

Structural Evaluation: Meets minimum tolerable limits to be left in place as-is.

 

Water Adequacy Evaluation: Superior to present desirable criteria.

 

Bridge Sufficiency Rating: 50%

 

A University of Minnesota Civil Engineer in a report to MN-DOT recently noted that this bridge is considered to be a non-redundant structure. That is, if any one member fails, the entire bridge can collapse. A key factor is that there are only four pylons holding up the arch. Any damage to any one pylon would be catastropic. The textbook example of a non-redundant bridge is the Silver Bridge over the Ohio River. It failed shortly before Christmas in 1967 resulting in 46 deaths. A single piece of hardware failed due to a tiny manufacturing defect. But that piece was non-redundant, and the entire bridge collapsed into the icy river. Today, bridge engineers design bridges so that any single piece of the bridge can fail without causing the entire bridge to collapse. It is tragic that the I-35W bridge was built a few years too early to benefit from that lesson.

 

 

 

NoteÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Ã

[Rcty]

This really smacked Departments of Transportations in the face. This is making the headlines the past two days of my local newspaper, and they've put 750+ bridges in need of upgrades on a list. It also showed a chart comparing how many states had potentially faulty bridges than others.

 

 

 

By the way, I heard on national news that the death total was currently only five. :-s

 

 

 

~Rcty

[Wisp]

well thats "confirmed" deaths, there are still 20-60 cars underwater they cant even get to, and it's expected to rise dramatically. They can't move parts of the bridge to get to cars, so they can find out why it collapsed, everyone who's not out is dead now anyway, it's been two days.

[Tigra00]

Yea, I highly doubt they're going to find anyone alive now. Unless there is a dude trapped under all that crap in JUST the right spot, everyone under the debris is dead, and the death toll (6, I heard) will be higher. I talked to someone today whose father never came home that night and isn't confirmed dead, so he's still under there, and they know it.

[stopspe]

Its wierd thinking i was on it about 30 min before collapse