Genoa motorway bridge collapses 'killing at least 10' - Sensationalist Headlines

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-45183624

holy shit that's absolutely massive. There are going to be more fatalities, I'm willing to wager.

What the fuck

I bet the dude in the green truck is damn glad he drove a bit slower today or something.

https://i.imgur.com/h0BDzDQ.png Very lucky this part is still standing, could have easily flattened two buildings under it as well.

Really curious to know what they find, these bridges should not be falling. Street view in Google maps actually goes under the pillar that collapsed, if anyone is interested in seeing. Google Maps Also update no the dead in local news, 22 dead.

I'd hate to be the engineer who designed that bridge right now.

*Engineer

Prior to the collapse there was heavy rain. It's becoming clearer that the foundation has probably failed resulting in the collapse of the superstructure

death toll is at 22 now :c

I'm reading a count of 35 now. In regards to speculations as what might have happened: The concrete they used for the elements, wasn't mixed correctly, back in 1967. And in the 1980's, drivers reported the driving surface to be uneven, because the elements had started to shift, because of poor concrete quality. They only seemed to do superficial fixes to improve the driving surface, but never anything to enhance or improve the questionable structural integrity. It's apparently a bridged that has been plagued by problems in the past. Source

Structures don't move because of poor concrete mixes. Incorrectly designed and/or constructed foundations will cause movement.

it could be one of many contributing factors. your wording implies it already. "incorrectly designed and/or constructed foundations"

Looks like it was a lightning to give the last hit to that pillar, or so some witnesses say.

Just look at the bridge, two months ago https://files.facepunch.com/forum/upload/132800/5b966e4a-e44a-4f72-b436-b95559d674f3/39132056_10156288919086068_3903010659331211264_o.jpg

I was just reading that apparently the original designer/engineer, although gifted, did not calculate the age at which the reinforced concrete would age accurately, necessitating very expensive, frequent maintenance. Really sad story though and this should not be occurring in richer countries. It's kinda like how the Grenfell Tower fire exposed the vast issue with wealth inequality and poor municipal governance in London recently.

Found this site with a lot of images of the bridge from 2015, showing its state and some of the reinforcing done over the years. Link https://files.facepunch.com/forum/upload/1195/82b3214a-05dc-476c-9378-3af18fb7a648/genova_ponte_morandi_074_2015-08-08_14-40_resize.jpg Are those steel plates?

I was only referring to the movement/settlement of the structure

I have no experience in mechanical engineering, but isn't bolting steel plates on a massive concrete bridge like that essentially trying to use duct tape to keep a girder together? On that scale atleast.

Looks like some kinda of mesh. You can see the concrete through it.

Yea they fucked with the concrete during construction and it got fucked later. Should have been demolished and replaced earlier but noo muh mone is more important than keeping things functional and tidy

All I can say is that I'm betting the people who live in those apartments under that one span are probably counting their blessings, and re-evaluating living under a bridge.

holy fucking shit, heads better roll. Looking at that is an abomination to the heritage of Italy.

I didn't realize cement motorways were part of my heritage

Found this on the Skyscrapercity forum: Bridge Maintenance, Safety, Management and Life Page 50-52 talks specifically about this bridge, very interesting read. The Polcevera Bridge and other Morandi tied bridges represent an exceptional reference from the conceptual, aesthetic and technical point of view, which is even more relevant if related to the times in which these structures were built. Nowadays, however, similar static schemes, though brilliant, cannot be proposed. According to the modern criteria of durability, the "prestressed concrete tie" does not appear as a safe solution for elements in tension. Moreover, the suspension action entrusted to a limited number of elements, making the whole structure less robust and the maintenance actions quite difficult. In the 60s prestressed concrete was a miracle material, and Morandi was particularly obsessed with it. Their bridges were unique in the sense that even the stays were made out of prestressed concrete (with wires inside), instead of using steel cables as with almost every other cable stayed bridge. It's a nightmare when it comes to maintenance because you need to x-ray the the stays to check for corrosion inside. The stays on one of the of the pylons (not the one which collapsed) were even reinforced with external steel cables in the 90s. There are two bridges like this (also designed by Morandi), one in Venezuela, the other in Libya. The concrete stays of the Venezuelan one were completely replaced with regular steel cables by a German company. The Libyan one was closed in 2017 after fractures were identified. Looking more carefully, it indeed looks like some kind of netting. Perhaps to prevent pieces of concrete pieces from falling.

You can see the grid of the steel reinforcement beneath it, so you're probably right. Well, to prevent any more pieces of concrete from falling, anyway. It's interesting that Venezuela and Libya, of all places, fixed their shit, while Italy, a big power, is just doing patchwork. I mean, I know I say that from the United States, but we're know for this kind of thing.

word on the street is the Romans had some pretty kickass roads

What is it with cities waiting for disaster to fix the obviously problematic structures? A similar thing almost happened right here in my town of Lynchburg, where the college lake dam almost burst from too much rainfall. Sure, people had been complaining about the structural integrity of a dam built in the 1930's since 2014, but only now, after the thing almost busts, do they try and fix it. Whether it's here in the U.S, Italy, or the U.K, why do they wait for disaster as the mark for when things need to be fixed?

I don't think there is anything Roman rivaling a vast modern suspension bridge, but the amount of their architecture still standing is certainly a testament to their durability. Some of their aqueducts are still in use.

Well y'all invented concrete, it's at least expected to be decent at it