Bridge Collapse on Mississippi

Thoughts go out to all those involved, their families and friends who were involved in tonight's dreadful bridge collapse. Let's hope 'miracles' can still happen and more survivors will be found.

 

One already: a school bus filled with children was on the span near the bank when it collapsed. The driver and helpers were able to stabilize the bus and evacuate the children.

Hopefully some of those missing so far will survive.

 

thankyou for your commpasion bergy,in a time when things arent to good for America,longliner

 

*BUMP*

I used to work as a deckhand on that stretch of the Mississippi. I used to look at the underside of that bridge six times a week. It always made me nervous. I never saw chunks of cement falling or anything like that, but to me untrained eye it just looked kind of... spindly. I don't know. A friend of a friend is in the hospital with crushed feet and a broken back because of this; but she's alive. Which, poor souls, some are not.

 

eponodyne
These are good observations. You may have been in quite a unique viewing position. Too late for the people involved this time.

However what other bridges did you pass under and how did they look. Are the authorities doing their inspections and repairs.

I work in risk management and occassionally see things for public use that cause me to contact the authorities. It often surprises me how responsibility is passed down the line by public authorities to contractors so in the end it is hard to find anyone really accountable. The public need to be more vigilant and follow up on things that just don't look right. Often those paid to do it are distracted by less trivial but more engaging matters.

The bridge collapse instigated a lot of press on our ailing bridge here in Melbourne, AU. It started life with a bad reputation following a major collapse during construction and there are ongoing concerns about the load it carries now. Designers did not contemplate the size and speed of modern trucks or that the structure would carry nose-to-tail congested lines of traffic in all lanes in both directions for a good part of any week day. It would be interesting to review the design criteria.

Rick W.