Posted on 08/02/2007 8:17:33 PM PDT by Westpole
Thankfully even the most heavily used bridges almost never collapse. Bridges near the ocean with salt water spray are particularly vulnerable to weaknesses caused by corrosion yet they too rarely collapse. In fact the handfull of bridges that have collapse are a result of earthquake, poor engineering (this reveals itself almost immediately after construction) or some other easily identifiable factor. We are now in the second day and no one yet has a clue why the bridge collapsed.
This is extremely peculiar. The design was not exotic and the location of the bridge was not in any area prone to temblors that could weaken it. And most importantly is was mid way into its useful life. Long enough to have bugs worked out but way to young to have some type of fatigue break it.
What we do know is that the bridge fell from one end to the other and that it rose first then fell. Well an explosion could cause a bridge to momentairly rise then collapse. Bridges are not patrolled and can cause great economic havoc. So have our enemies targeted other transportation. Bridges and tunnels for example. When the first plane crashed into the north world trade center tower every thought it an accident. The second the second plane hit everyone knew this was no accident. We will see in coming days if we have any other mysterious bridge collapses like this one.
Oh jeez. It had to happen eventually.
Are you high?
tin-foil hat time?
No
Here we go!
Bad things happen to good people, that’s life.
Meow???
I knew it wouldn’t be long before the nutjobs came out of the woodwork.
Well, the thought did cross my mind.
The bridge was in lousy shape and the state and fed authorities have known about it since 1990.
Coo-coo.
Coo-coo.
Fruit loop.
Putyouinastraightjacket.
Coo-coo.
It came to mind.... My basic take is Islamism until demonstrated otherwise. Though there had evidently been warnings about this bridge’s decaying state since 1990.
LOL.
All aboard the crazy train!!!
:-)
AaOOOGahh.
Then go here to see how straight it was in 1967, when it was under construction.
great post. The circumstances are very suspicious.
It had to be said....
It really would be hilarious if people didn’t die there. I do admit to laughing a little. I thought about posting something to this effect last night, but refrained.
It was a North Korean mini-sub that came all the way up the Mississippi and then used a nuclear powered laser to blow up the bridge. They’ll never find the sub in all the wreckage.......(snicker)
God help us if he’s right.
I didn't. Seriously. And I thought it was Muslim terrorists.
Just wait till the Alaskan way viaduct collapses in Seattle. Thousands will die.
I don’t know why the bridge fell. I did look at the security tape on youtube that shows the bridge breaking and falling. The point where it broke off was a straight line. It looked like it just snapped along a dotted line. Maybe that is the pressure point that gave way due to faulty construction, but it is eerie to look at.
A controlled explosion?
Yes, I agree totally.
I’ve heard from several people near the bridge who say they saw a guy who looked a lot like Elvis Presley. He was running from the scene.
But was he being chased by Jack Bauer?
Yea, the same bunch that preconditioned the twin towers for collapse were in charge of the demises of an obscure bridge in Minnesota.
Maximum causalities would occur at that particular time frame.
Alternatively, it caves in from the middle and collapses toward both ends.
De-icing chemicals used in the winter months in Northern states tend to damage this kind of bridge.
If we had more surveillance cameras out there we'd have a much better idea of what happened.
No. The newer information says there were warnings going all the way back to 1990. It was probably a bad construction job. Toss in years of heavy trucks, cold winters, etc. I don’t think anybody knew just how bad it was but a critical part failure doesn’t take long to turn into a full collapse.
LOL!
Remember, AlQaida hs a good number of structural engineers in its ranks.
View the video and think...
Why did the West abutment suddenly fall, several seconds after all other motion had ceased, and the rest of the bridge had broken away?
There may be a logical explanation to come out, but I would like to hear it anyway.
Well, not everyone. By 2001, "political correctness" was firmly entrenched. It was the default MSM mode. I wish I could remember what cable channel I was watching at the time, but the mental giant reporting at the time actually said something like, "Two airline accidents in clear weather an hour apart... what are the odds?"
Having said that, the most likely cause of this bridge collapse is criminal neglect; over the last 40 years what has driven budgets is "social engineering", welfare, and even taxes collected for the specific purpose of highway construction and maintenance (e.g. gas taxes) has been syphoned off, with total impunity, to things like "art" and "gay pride parades".
If there is any question as to this being the cause, I would love to see the annual budgets for the states and the percentage of those budgets actually spent for highway construction and preventive maintenance.
Just saying.
Events like this make me count my blessings. It’s amazing that so many things do in fact work so well so much of the time. Think of all the bridges in the country, all the flights taking off and landing every day, and a whole lot of other things we take for granted. Heck, I’m amazed every time I survive a trip on the Los Angeles freeways.
Saw the video. I could swear I saw an Airbus A380 hit that bridge. It was remote controlled. There were cruise missles under the wings. The French flight crew is being detained at Gitmo. That Bush is one evil dude.....
Good catch. Lots of “money quotes” there. I like the the speculation in the comments that the reconstruction itself was not necessarily stressful, but they might have redirected traffic in a way that caused extra stresses.
There is a bridge that i use everyday. It’s not over water either, but it was built about 10 years ago on a flood plain, right smack parallel to a river. The thing started to sink the first year as the wet earth sank. It’s still got problems. They’re still making adjustments to it. It’s a bumpy ride all the way. If that thing ever collapses (God forbid!) we’ll land on the earth below.
“Another interesting fact is that the bridge collapse occurred at the height of the rush hour according to the news reports I’ve heard.”
You mean the time when it would be carrying the most amount of weight and vibration?
That's true, but it was also true the day before. Have you watched the video?
The infidels were playing baseball.
No more LIHOP nor MIHOP BS but it could be a Make Only Other Nutjobs Believe Assinine Things (MOONBAT) or it could be Watch As Crazy Kooks Jump On Bush Syndrome (WACKJOBS).
Wow. The ony thing that makes me doubt that aerial view is how the neighboring bridge also appears distorted. Perhaps they’ve both moved over time or perhaps it’s a place where the satellite photos didn’t line up.
Want to see safety improve over night? A road owned by private industry that would be required to service traffic (probably by statute) will be the safest road in the country. The private owner makes money (either toll based or fee based from businesses connected to said road for upkeep) and the driver knows beyond a shadow of a doubt he would be much safer.
Course I realize this idea is foreign after a few generations of the general public expecting such 'conveniences' from the government but the roads would be safer, better kept, and a boost not only to the economy (through further investments by the private company in the local economies) but the government would get a load of money thereby reducing taxes.
The government was never intended to be in the road building business (except specifically post roads. This also does not include Eisenhowerian flights of fancy for 'defense roads' (i.e. the interstate system). That's why our roads are in the shape they're in. Shoddily built by contractors looking to make the most possible money out of a project cut corners
That was our first thought. If it is true, we’ll never know. I’ve been watching all the “news” programs, hoping the barking spiders with microphones will change our minds.
You must be a southroner. They salt the roads up nawth to melt the ice. The run off is saltier than ocean water.
Bridges are not patrolled and can cause great economic havoc. So have our enemies targeted other transportation.
This one had supervised construction crews on it.
Also it fell flat. Anyone with even minimal military demolitions training knows you blow a bridge to twist as it falls.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
