The I-40 disaster bridge is the collapse of a bridge that occurred in southeast of Webbers Falls, Oklahoma, USA at 7:45 pm on May 26, 2002. Joe Dedmon, captain of the towing vessel Robert Y. Love , had a fainting spell and lost control of the crane. This, in turn, caused the barge he controlled to collide with the bridge dock. The result is a 580-foot (176,78 m) Interstate 40 bridge that plunges into Robert S. Kerr Dam on the Arkansas River. By the time the traffic stops and people become aware of the lost roads, 8 passenger vehicles and 3 tractor-semitrailer trucks have fallen into the river or in the collapsed bridge section. Fourteen people were killed and eleven others injured when several tractor cars and trailers fell off the bridge. Survivors are assisted by fishermen participating in a goldfish fishing tournament on the river near the bridge.
Video I-40 bridge disaster
Saving and restoring
Three people who fall into the river in their vehicle can get out, and swim to the beach. While fishing in fishing tournaments, fishermen on the water see the disaster happen and trying to help the victims and stop the cars and trucks they witnessed driving toward the failure of the bridge. A fisherman along the river fired a flare to a tractor-trailer driver to stop the truck. Others throw straps at individuals in vehicles to try to pull them out of the water.
An elaborate rescue effort when William James Clark, who mimicked the US Army captain, could take over the command of disaster for two days. Clark's efforts included directing FBI agents and picking up vehicles and equipment for rescue efforts, before escaping from the scene. Clark, has been a criminal twice, then arrested in Canada.
An estimated 20,000 vehicles per day were re-routed for about two months while the crew rebuilt the bridge. Traffic resumed on Monday, July 29, 2002, just two months after the disaster. The reopening sets a new national record for such a project, which is usually expected to take six months.
Maps I-40 bridge disaster
Investigation & amp; Litigation
It was reported that the Robert Y. Love towboat had problems with escorting the wheel in 1994, even though the Coast Guard Lieutenant was brim. Natalie Magnino claims that at the time, the problem was caused by debris that had disturbed the wheel and was not the result of a mechanical failure or pilot error.
The National Transportation Safety Council declared in 2004 that the collapse was due to Captain Dedmon's loss of consciousness, possibly due to unexpected abnormal heart rhythms. University of Indiana Medical Professor Douglas Zipes agrees with this explanation and states in his letter to Dedmon's lawyer that Dedmon may have ventricular tachycardia, which causes him to faint. As a result of the accident, the Safety Board recommended that the U.S. Coast Guard Research and Development Center evaluate the usefulness and effectiveness of warning systems inside the towing boats. This is in addition to a warning system for riders to stop in case of collapse of a partial or total bridge.
In May 2003, the bridge victim collapsed finishing the lawsuit with the owner of the towing company causing the bridge to collapse. The Mississippi-based company, Magnolia Marine Transport Co., settled with 14 families of the deceased and those hurt by an undisclosed amount. This is separate from other settings against companies by the state of Oklahoma and MBO Video.
See also
- Bridge portal
- Portal disaster
- Oklahoma Portal
- List of bridge disasters
- Arkansas River Cross List
- Tasman Bridge disaster - 7,000 tons of ore carrier bridge causing road collapse
- Queen Isabella Causeway - A similar accident in 2001
- Granville train disaster - Train hits the dock
- Big Bayou Canot trains disaster - Amtrak trains fall from a bridge that has been hit by a barge.
References
External links
- Webbers Decreased 10th Anniversary, Video by ODot
- Article from 'The Oklahoman'
- Articles from CNN
- Fainting spell causes crash barge, bridge collapses, NTSB concludes
- Air Photo Gallery
- I-40 NTSB bridge collision report
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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