I don’t necessarily buy the construction thing, the heat thing, and the one lane thing.
1. Bridge work was being done on the deck on top of the bridge. The actual supporting structure was not being worked on.
2. The traffic was moving slowly. One lane worth to boot. Therefore there was less compression from fast moving traffic. The slower the traffic the less the bridge deck bows and shakes.
3. These bridges should be fine in the heat. It is hot, but not that hot.
FWIW
Inspection report last year indicated cracks in the structure.
It has been in the mid 90’s for two straight weeks.
The bridge is 40 years old.
It is a four lane bridge, down to one lane during construction.
Stopped traffic during rush hour.
C’mon........
Yeah, the "oh, the heat did it" crowd is pretty hilarious.
I lived in MPLS for a while in the early '70s (pre-global warming, LOL!), and it got a lot hotter than the current weather there.
Funny thing, though -- no bridges (and there are a lot of bridges in that city) ever went kaboom, taking out a decent portion of a mile's worth of roadway.
It just doesn't happen -- until yesterday, of course. :) And now, it makes perfect sense, and anyone who doesn't swallow the notion that 90 deg. weather will catastrophically destroy bridges is a nutcase!
And that "it's old" story is itself getting old. Hell, this country is chock full 'o bridges a LOT older than that. The Brooklyn Bridge -- built with sub-grade defective steel (crooked contractor) dates back to the 1860s, and it's still standing -- and carrying a lot more traffic than that MPLS bridge -- and carrying it over a MUCH longer span.
Then there's the George Washington Bridge -- MUCH older (I think they added the second layer of roadways BEFORE this bridge was built) -- also traversing a much longer span, and still standing. And, the Whitestone bridge -- now there's a bridge that was built with a defective plan (it's twin vibrated apart in Tacoma WA), re-fitted to avoid wind problems, and, still standing (across a much larger span).
I doubt it would be difficult to compile a massive list of "old" bridges, still in service, with no problems.
The "it's old" gambit reeks of hasty "we've got to come up with something to shut up these 'could be terrorism' clowns before they scare someone!"
Of course, there's the guy who last night insisted it broke NOT because it was "old", but rather, because it was too new! I kid you not. You just can't make this stuff up.
It's hilarious -- and sad -- seeing a once-proud people quivering in fear of that which they... fear, coming up with one lame excuse after another, rather than face up to the reality that we are at war, we are under attack, by a brutal, merciless, and credibly dangerous foe.
Hell, we won't even roll up the carpet and lock the damn door at our borders. Anything to avoid coming out of denial.
So, forget I said anything, folks. Go back to sleep. Watch your teevee set. The bigger the better. Pay fifty bucks for the wrestling channel. Buy more beer.
Bread and circuses beats reality any day. ('cept for the day when the bill comes due, and then everyone whines about why didn't anyone warn them about what was coming.)
Oh, the humanity.