I-85 Fire Overpass Collapse

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nickqt

nickqt

Diamond Member
Jan 15, 2015
8,219
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s0me0nesmind1 said:
How long have they said it would take to repair? Media was making it out to be months.... I would hope they would escalate things to do work 24/7.

Also with the monetary cost of this type of damages.... the people caught for this type of arson should have to do a life sentence term with labor included to pay back their damages. Absolutely ridiculous to think this was a smart idea.
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A few months sounds about right. They have to check a lot of the rest of the roadway that connects, and then build it all back up.
 
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piasabird

Lifer
Feb 6, 2002
17,168
60
91
There was a rumor that this fire was started with a crack pipe. I really think the fire marshall and whoever stored all that stuff under the bridge like that should go to jail.
 
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piasabird

Lifer
Feb 6, 2002
17,168
60
91
I am guessing they have to first have a thorough inspection of the bridge which is 8 lanes wide. You cant just lay down a piece of steel over the opening, because they claim they need to replace 300 feet of roadway which may also include the support structure which has been weakened. When they build overpasses they normally have to leave them unused for about 12 months for the cement to cure. Maybe they can avoid the wait or shorten it.
 
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piasabird

Lifer
Feb 6, 2002
17,168
60
91
It is some kind of policy they use in Illinois. It has to do with how they construct new highways. They tend to build the overpass first then they let it stand for a while for some reason. I dont claim to be some kind of bridge construction expert. Maybe it makes the overpasses last longer or something.

Of course this could be construction slowdown technique that Unions use. I know often that construction funding comes in phases. So maybe they do the overpasses first because it costs so much.

I think a lot depends on if the support structures were damaged or not. I dont know what that kind of heat can do to reinforced concrete. They had a barge hit a footing on the bridge once in St Louis, MO and everyone was freaking out.
 
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piasabird

Lifer
Feb 6, 2002
17,168
60
91
I wonder about the Overpasses that come off of the Bridges that span the Mississippi river in St Louis, MO. They seem to be over 50ft tall. In places the lanes split apart and sometimes someone will just run off the bridge with all the merging traffic. This usually is a problem with some trucks that carry a heavy load. In the winter the roads also get a little icy.
 
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brycejones

Lifer
Oct 18, 2005
30,119
31,108
136
piasabird said:
It is some kind of policy they use in Illinois. It has to do with how they construct new highways. They tend to build the overpass first then they let it stand for a while for some reason. I dont claim to be some kind of bridge construction expert. Maybe it makes the overpasses last longer or something.

Of course this could be construction slowdown technique that Unions use. I know often that construction funding comes in phases. So maybe they do the overpasses first because it costs so much.

I think a lot depends on if the support structures were damaged or not. I dont know what that kind of heat can do to reinforced concrete. They had a barge hit a footing on the bridge once in St Louis, MO and everyone was freaking out.
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I have never seen this anywhere. I think you need to educate yourself before you start whining about unions or other made up reasons.
 
CZroe

CZroe

Lifer
Jun 24, 2001
24,195
857
126
piasabird said:
There was a rumor that this fire was started with a crack pipe. I really think the fire marshall and whoever stored all that stuff under the bridge like that should go to jail.
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Eleby, the person who started the fire, confessed that he and two other homeless people jumped the fence to go smoke crack. The other two claim that only Eleby partook of the drugs but admitted that was their intention when they followed him. They witnessed him set a chair on a shopping cart and ignite it, which would give a lot of oxygen to the fire. I did not see it mentioned that he lit it with his crack pipe. Makes more sense that he lit it with the same lighter he used to light his crack pipe. These are reported on the news as fact and not rumor.

Also, that PVC conduit is normally very resistant to fire. You can't just start it by throwing a match or cigarette at it. This was straight-up arson, especially knowing the details of the chair on the shopping cart.
 
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alien42

Lifer
Nov 28, 2004
12,876
3,303
136
so far, Atlanta has done pretty well with this catastrophe. unfortunately, I-20 buckled this morning due to a gas leak and now all routes into Atlanta from the Northeast to Southeast side are shut down. the result is half the perimeter, I-285, is solid red on Google traffic and rush hour hasn't even begun. add in Braves traffic on the north side and tonight is going to be a traffic nightmare. thankfully they should have I-20 fixed tomorrow.

http://www.ajc.com/news/traffic/upd...uesday-lanes-expected-clear-rush-hour-monday/
 
nickqt

nickqt

Diamond Member
Jan 15, 2015
8,219
9,260
136
I live about a mile from that right off I-20. Luckily it'll be repaired in the next few days.
 
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