Bridge Collapse in Genoa, Italy
A tragic scene has no doubt unfolded with the collapse of a major arterial viaduct in Genoa, Italy. First I want to offer my personal prayers for the victims, their friends and families.
I was first drawn to a news article with a headline reading “Heavy Storm Causes Bridge Collapse”. Of course once I began ejucatin’ myself with the available data it became apparent a storm probably had little to do with the collapse in a direct sense, unless the pier system was compromised by flood waters.
Second I was surprised to see the bridge appeared to be a (modern design) pretty typical reinforced concrete structure as opposed to steel truss. And I did read the bridge was undergoing some level of repairs while still under traffic. One photo of the resultant debris looked as if almost every vehicle was a tractor-trailer. I wonder if slowed traffic due to the storm and/or construction created uneven or critical loading.
I guess we’ll eventual get to read more details. Even though this is half a world away it could be a lot closer to home but by the Grace of God. The aging infrastructure in the U.S. is apparent to those of us that find ourselves under some of these bridges. The view from underneath is far more revealing than a trip over the bridge deck at 60 mph.
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