Watched a bit of it on the news. Horrifying - and of course it brings to my mind the ongoing concern about 135 overpasses and bridges in Quebec that are "at risk".
Mississippi River Interstate bridge collapses
wcco.com - I-35W Bridge Collapses Into Mississippi RiverAug 1, 2007 7:57 pm US/Central
I-35W Bridge Collapse Into Mississippi River
Slideshow: I-35W Bridge Collapse
(WCCO) Minneapolis New at 7:58 p.m.
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Workers from a St. Michael company called Progressive were working on the bridge
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Paul McCabe, a spokesman with the FBI in Minneapolis, said agents responded to the bridge and would conduct any necessary investigations.
"Although it is much too early to make any determination of the cause, we have no reason at this time to believe there is any nexus to terrorism," he said.
Brian Turmail, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Transportation, said the department is getting briefed on the collapse, but it was mainly being handed by local agencies.
"Right now the focus is on saving lives," he said.
All four lanes of the Interstate 35W Mississippi River bridge near University Avenue has collapsed into the river and onto businesses underneath the highway at 6:05 p.m. Wednesday.
Emergency Management officials have confirmed three people are dead and at least 20 people have been transported to local hospitals.
According to reports from the scene, crews on the Mississippi River are no longer in rescue mode but recovery mode.
Cars are still on the bridge.
According to a structural engineer who spoke with WCCO-TV's Don Shelby, it doesn't appear to be a concrete failure but that the steel failed.
Some people are stranded on parts of the bridge that aren't completely in the water.
"I couldn't event even count how many cars went off the bridge," said one woman who witnesses the collapse from her apartment. "We're helping people on backboards."
She said she pulled 12 out of river and said there were people that were deceased.
WCCO-AM reported that one body was scene being pulled from the area, covered with a blue sheet.
A tractor-trailer is still on fire at the collapse scene with plumes of smoke clouding the sky.
"I thought it was just construction going on ... it was a free fall all the way to the ground," said one person who was on the bridge at the time. "Thank God I was wearing my seat belt. The only thing I was hit was the steering wheel."
According to that same witness it was bumper to bumper traffic when the bridge collapsed.
Some cars are still precariously perched on the bridge. Sections of the bridge are mangled, some are pointing up in the air and some are in the river.
"My truck got completely torn in half," said Gary Bavanaugh, who was on the bridge when it collapsed. "The bridge started shaking and it went down fast."
Bavanaugh said he was headed northbound on I-35W when he heard a huge rumbling and he saw a huge cloud of white dust as the bridge collapsed. He had his seatbelt on and said if he hadn't, his head would have gone through the windshield.
Bavanaugh said a school bus full of children was ahead of him. He got on the bus and helped children, who he estimated to be 8-12 years old, off the bus and off the bridge.
"It is just horrific," said witness Marilyn Franzen, who saw the bridge collapse. Franzen said she saw a school bus that managed to stop before the going over the edge of the bridge that she said was carrying 20-30 children.
the video shows the complete devastation. Both directions.
Incredible.....
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Look how close that bus was..20 kids on board
detailed photo gallery here
The World | The Australian
The one engineer interviewed thought it might be thermal stress.
Soon to be followed by numerous lawsuits, and an ABC Movie Of The Week.
tptptptp CNN has a little video of the collapse on the front page at the moment. Loads slowly, probably it's being viewed a lot at the moment. Truly scary.
Of course it's not the "cause" the truck just MIGHT be the trigger tho.
Most of these are cumulative in some manner, maybe a risky one off design, hotter weather, ( one engineer mentioned this ) a rough road with an outer envelope weight truck, some accumulated stress weakening the steel and little support from the road bed which was being replaced.
In some sense that it's an"unusual" design at least gives some reassurance - unlike in Quebec where there are dozens of cookie cutter over passes of similar design.
Over time tho replacing the Interstate, even just the bridges alone, is going to be one hell of a amount of money needing to be spent.
This is the photo that caught my eye.
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That truck buried.
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Beej - can't see a relation with oil exploration technology but perhaps with other imaging technologies for stress and weld issues.
Some of the infrared monitoring over time might have some play.
Most of these are cumulative in some manner, maybe a risky one off design, hotter weather, ( one engineer mentioned this ) a rough road with an outer envelope weight truck, some accumulated stress weakening the steel and little support from the road bed which was being replaced.
In some sense that it's an"unusual" design at least gives some reassurance - unlike in Quebec where there are dozens of cookie cutter over passes of similar design.
Over time tho replacing the Interstate, even just the bridges alone, is going to be one hell of a amount of money needing to be spent.
This is the photo that caught my eye.
•••
Beej - can't see a relation with oil exploration technology but perhaps with other imaging technologies for stress and weld issues.
Some of the infrared monitoring over time might have some play.
Saw the video. It was really scary how fast it collapsed. And, yes, lawsuits are probably already being drawn up.Soon to be followed by numerous lawsuits, and an ABC Movie Of The Week.
CNN has a little video of the collapse on the front page at the moment. Loads slowly, probably it's being viewed a lot at the moment. Truly scary.
I used to recall travelling in Quebec and the main roads were awful due to over weight trucks. I think that has changed.
Look at this
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Look at this
Bipartisan bill too.........fur gonna fly now.....Mike Harris admirers et al..take note....TANSTAAFL
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Shall we blame the terrorists for this - after all .....................fill in the blanks.
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