According to the Coast Guard and municipal authorities, a major bridge in Baltimore collapsed early Tuesday following a cargo ship collision, throwing vehicles into the Atlantic and necessitating an emergency response.
When the cargo ship impacted, officials were searching for road maintenance workers working on the Francis Scott Key Bridge, a segment of Interstate 695.
The horrifying footage of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore will stay with many people for a very long time. Watching the footage might help engineers comprehend why the span fell so quickly.
Although it’s difficult to pinpoint exactly what happened based solely on camera footage, Mark Richards, a British structural engineer with 35 years of experience in the subject, stated that the bridge’s collapse was “pretty evident” due to the large container ship’s impact on a crucial portion of the building. He did not participate in the construction of the Key Bridge.
Dr. Richards stated that numerous eventualities, including worst-case scenarios and dangers, are considered while designing bridges before the structures are constructed. According to him, legislation frequently mandates that these options be considered.
Planning for every scenario, however, is difficult, he said.
He stated, “We can’t design every structure to accommodate every possible event.” However, “these kinds of incidents are very, very, very rare,” he continued.
An inquiry will be necessary to demonstrate what went wrong and what precautions were taken to avoid similar situations. According to him, other aspects to consider include the ship’s dimensions and weight.
Professor of civil engineering Sanjay R. Arwade of the University of Massachusetts Amherst stated that a collapse would undoubtedly occur if the ship removed one of the bridge’s two support piers, as it seems to have done.
He stated that a complete collapse of one of the piers would be disastrous for any long-span bridge.