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from the but-lets-talk-about-their-aquaducts dept.
A long section of the towering Ponte Morandi Bridge completely collapsed in Genoa, Italy, on Tuesday, sending cars and trucks on the A10 highway crashing down below. Dozens of people died in the bridge failure, officials say.
As news emerged from the chaotic scene, the death toll fluctuated several times Tuesday. Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said there were 22 dead, according to public broadcaster Rai News. But Italy's ANSA news agency has reported at least 37 people died, citing the fire brigade.
Workers have found bodies and vehicles in the massive amount of wreckage left by the collapse — and at least 11 people have been pulled from the rubble alive, Italian media report.
[...] The disaster struck shortly before noon, when one of the bridge's central pillars collapsed during a violent rainstorm. A witness told ANSA that lightning had struck the bridge before the collapse.
[...] The bridge was built in the late 1960s, at a length of more than 3,600 feet. It had recently been the subject of renovation and repair efforts. Italian roadway company Autostrade says the most recent work included consolidating the viaduct's base — a project that included installing a bridge crane.
Besides the obvious news value of this event, I'd be curious of any civil engineers or structural engineers could comment on the engineering behind such things. What causes these types of crumblings to happen, and exactly how reliable is infrastructure around the world?
(Score: 3, Informative) by Kunasou on Thursday August 16 2018, @08:55AM (3 children)
It's the same bridge collapse.
Sadly, there's another section of the bridge that is in danger of collapse too (this one has several flats below).
(Score: 4, Interesting) by canopic jug on Thursday August 16 2018, @09:36AM (2 children)
Apparently the maintenance was outsourced to a private company [theguardian.com] which seems to have just pocketed the money rather than spend any on maintenance. That is above and beyond the engineering problems
Money is not free speech. Elections should not be auctions.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 16 2018, @11:53AM
That's Genoacide!
(Score: 2) by Gaaark on Thursday August 16 2018, @10:33PM
Methinks a bankrupting lawsuit is necessary: except you won't be able to financially touch those that need to be punished, probably.
Sad what a dollar will do to people that don't really need it.
"If I squeeze this for another dollar by using THIS shit, ...... ....... YAY, I WIN!" and people die. Clever girl.
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---