minneapolis bridge collapse

[Danzig]

for those who haven't seen it, a bridge collapsed over the miss river, just happened not even two hours ago. no way of knowing yet about injuries, fatalities.

i hope that anyone on here from the area, or who has relatives/friends there, that your loved ones are safe.

[MinnSkinny]

Mine are, thank the Lord. My daughter is in Dental school at the U, and crossed the bridge at 5:10 this afternoon. You can imagine how I felt when I heard the news.

[declansharbor]

Watching this on CNN in total shock. I couldnt fathom being the driver or occupant of one of these cars. My heart goes out to the people affected by such tragic events.

[AeWingnut]

That's just too horrible to imagine. I've often wonderd and someitmes dreamed about this happening but it's just too horrible.

and during rush hour traffic

[Hickory Hill Hoff]

There was a simliar (but on a much smaller scale) incident in Fort Hunter N.Y. in 1987. The N.Y. State Thruway bridge which crossed the Schoharie Creek there collapsed after heavy rains washed out the concrete bridge abutments. Ten people die when several vehicles fell 50 feet in the creek below. It happen in the early morning hours, so there wasn't too many vehicles crossing then. It had national attention at the time.

[pmayjr]

Living in the MPLS area, I just crossed that bridge last week. Kinda eery. I hope and pray for everyone involved that they're alright. As of 10PM CST, 7 dead, about 30-40 injured. It's a miracle it's not more than that. My prayers go out to all involved.

[ALostTexan]

Amazing that it is only 7 dead so far. Very unfortunate situation...

[timmgirvan]

Started watching this story about an hour after the collapse, and it reminded me alot of the Northridge Quake in '94! Pancaking of freeway overpasses was shocking then and now. 50 cars are still in the river, the bus full of kids fell 60 ft down and landed upright....2 kids are critical. 7 dead now,but surely more will follow! 2+ yrs of rebuilding.....talk about the commute now.

[_ed_]

Horrible. I commute over a bridge every day myself, hard to imagine such a tragic thing happening.

[ArlJim78]

how long before this tragedy is pinned on the Bush administration?
I say within 48-72 hours.

[Mortimer]

Originally Posted by ArlJim78

how long before this tragedy is pinned on the Bush administration?
I say within 48-72 hours.

There are no republicans..there are no democrats.




There are only repubrats.


Once you people understand this....why you may be on to something.


And the constant snotting about separation of church and state is a great carny show for these fucl<os to support.


No one can then allow themselves positive thinking time to the OUTRAGEOUS idea of separation of business and state.






You are all FOOLS arguing about the FOOLISH.

[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.

[Danzig]

"I don't know if anyone remembers this but former President Clinton warned the new government long time ago about the decaying infrastructure in this country. He said if they don't take care of this problem we will be seeing a lot of tragic events happening in the next few years. "

someone wrote that in response to a cnn article. so yeah, just a matter of time.



but in reality, our interstates do need attention. shame that this kind of stuff can't get funding when votes need to be bought...rather than a fish farm here, a dairy there....

[Danzig]

A 2001 study conducted by the Minnesota Department of Transportation found "several fatigue problems" in the bridge's approach spans and "poor fatigue details" on the main truss.

The study suggested that the design of bridge's main truss could cause a collapse if one of two support planes were to become cracked, although it allowed that a collapse might not occur in that event. But, the study concluded, "fatigue cracking of the deck truss is not likely" and "replacement of the bridge ... may be deferred."

[Danzig]

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, said the collapse should trigger action.

"I think we should look at this tragedy that occurred as a wake-up call for us. We have -- all over the country -- crumbling infrastructure, highways, bridges, dams, and we really need to take a hard look at this," Reid said Thursday.

He said it was "the right thing to do" for the infrastructure and the economy. "For every billion dollars we spend in our crumbling infrastructure, 47,000 high-paying jobs are created," Reid said.

Most bridges are inspected every two years and receive ratings based on the conditions of various components, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation

[ALostTexan]

True the interstates need repairs, but PLEASE don't give any control to the guys who run the Pennsylvania Turnpike. I don't know if it is State or Federal or Private groups that run it, but I cannot believe you have to pay to travel on it through Southern Pennsylvania and the road be in that sheety of shape, all of the time.

People always blame the hard winters, yet I-80 is further north, facing alot harder winters, yet is in alot better shape. Unbelieveable.

Sorry for the little rant, but this has always been a very touchy subject for me...

[horseofcourse]

Originally Posted by ArlJim78

how long before this tragedy is pinned on the Bush administration?
I say within 48-72 hours.

It's either the Bush administration or Clinton...one or the other. Our last two presidents alone are the cause of all the world's problems in history. Quite amazing.

[ArlJim78]

that are infrastructure is old and failing is true, and I think most people are aware of it. but for the pols its not such a sexy item, "elect me and we'll repair our bridges!". <yawn>

I imagine that this tragedy will get some attention to it.
we are not building and modernizing things such as dams, bridges, power plants, refineries, levees, rail, public transport, etc. it requires long term thinking and we don't excel at it.
of course the other small problem is paying for it.