Saturday, August 11, 2007
Friday, August 3, 2007
First alarm about bridge raised in 1990
MINNEAPOLIS - It was 1990 when the federal government first issued an ominous label for the state's busiest bridge: "structurally deficient." In the ensuing years, inspectors found cracks and corrosion on the Interstate-35W bridge. They stepped up inspections from once every two years to every year, and made what they thought were the necessary repairs. They were convinced that the bridge had no safety issues at all.
Their actions have come under intense scrutiny since the 40-year-old bridge plummeted into the Mississippi River on Wednesday, killing at least four and injuring another 79.
Police said the death count would surely grow because bodies had been spotted in the fast-moving currents. As many as 30 people were still reported missing.
"We have a number of vehicles that are underneath big pieces of concrete, and we do know we have some people in those vehicles," Police Chief Tim Dolan said Thursday. "We know we do have more casualties at the scene."
The eight-lane I-35W bridge, which carried 141,000 vehicles a day, was in the midst of mostly resurfacing repairs when it buckled during the Wednesday evening rush hour.
Dozens of cars plummeted more than 60 feet into the Mississippi River, some falling on top of one another. A school bus sat on the angled concrete.
Among the missing is Sadiya Sahal, 23, and her 2-year-old daughter, Hanah Mohamed. Sahal, who is five months pregnant, left home at 5:15 p.m. with the toddler in the back seat. She called her family at 5:30 p.m. saying she was stuck in traffic on the bridge, according to Omar Jamal, a spokesman for the family. That was her last phone call.
"Her husband is destroyed. He's in shock," Jamal said.
Officials identified the dead as Sherry Engebretsen, 60, of suburban Shoreview; Julia Blackhawk, 32, of Savage; Patrick Holmes, 36, of Moundsview; and Artemio Trinidad-Mena, 29, of Minneapolis.
Ronald Engebretsen said he and his family were trying to come to grips with his wife's death. "She's a great person. She's a person of great conviction, great integrity, great honesty and great faith in her God," he said.
National Transportation Safety Board chairman Mark Rosenker said his investigators got two big breaks Thursday with a surveillance video showing the collapse and a computer program that would analyze how the bridge failed. Those two things would speed their work and allow them to do a smaller reconstruction of part of the bridge span, rather than the whole thing.
Despite the powerful images of devastation from the collapse, some believed the design of the bridge reduced the death toll.
Joseph Schofer, professor of civil and environmental engineering at Northwestern University, said the bridge's underlying arch truss stopped heavy pieces of steel from falling onto vehicles when the cars plunged into the water.
Gov. Tim Pawlenty responded Thursday by ordering an immediate inspection of all bridges in the state with similar designs, but said the state was never warned that the I-35W bridge needed to be closed or immediately repaired.
"There was a view that the bridge was ultimately and eventually going to need to be replaced," he said. "But it appears from the information that we have available that a timeline for that was not immediate or imminent, but more in the future."
More than 70,000 bridges across the country are ra
Police said the death count would surely grow because bodies had been spotted in the fast-moving currents. As many as 30 people were still reported missing.
"We have a number of vehicles that are underneath big pieces of concrete, and we do know we have some people in those vehicles," Police Chief Tim Dolan said Thursday. "We know we do have more casualties at the scene."
The eight-lane I-35W bridge, which carried 141,000 vehicles a day, was in the midst of mostly resurfacing repairs when it buckled during the Wednesday evening rush hour.
Dozens of cars plummeted more than 60 feet into the Mississippi River, some falling on top of one another. A school bus sat on the angled concrete.
Among the missing is Sadiya Sahal, 23, and her 2-year-old daughter, Hanah Mohamed. Sahal, who is five months pregnant, left home at 5:15 p.m. with the toddler in the back seat. She called her family at 5:30 p.m. saying she was stuck in traffic on the bridge, according to Omar Jamal, a spokesman for the family. That was her last phone call.
"Her husband is destroyed. He's in shock," Jamal said.
Officials identified the dead as Sherry Engebretsen, 60, of suburban Shoreview; Julia Blackhawk, 32, of Savage; Patrick Holmes, 36, of Moundsview; and Artemio Trinidad-Mena, 29, of Minneapolis.
Ronald Engebretsen said he and his family were trying to come to grips with his wife's death. "She's a great person. She's a person of great conviction, great integrity, great honesty and great faith in her God," he said.
National Transportation Safety Board chairman Mark Rosenker said his investigators got two big breaks Thursday with a surveillance video showing the collapse and a computer program that would analyze how the bridge failed. Those two things would speed their work and allow them to do a smaller reconstruction of part of the bridge span, rather than the whole thing.
Despite the powerful images of devastation from the collapse, some believed the design of the bridge reduced the death toll.
Joseph Schofer, professor of civil and environmental engineering at Northwestern University, said the bridge's underlying arch truss stopped heavy pieces of steel from falling onto vehicles when the cars plunged into the water.
Gov. Tim Pawlenty responded Thursday by ordering an immediate inspection of all bridges in the state with similar designs, but said the state was never warned that the I-35W bridge needed to be closed or immediately repaired.
"There was a view that the bridge was ultimately and eventually going to need to be replaced," he said. "But it appears from the information that we have available that a timeline for that was not immediate or imminent, but more in the future."
More than 70,000 bridges across the country are ra
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Space Science World
Space Science World. Space is one of the subjects exploited in the immense park with topics of Dubailand which has the ambition to become the largest tourist park and of attractions in the world.
Dubailand Ski Dome!
Dubailand Ski Dome. This ski resort indoor, will comprise inter alia a directional ski piste and tracks of snowboard (with 6 000 tons of true snow). "Pinguinarium", aquariums four seasons, spa cold and hot... are also envisaged with the program.
Golden Dome.
Golden Dome. With its 455 m height and its 2,2 million m² of total surface, it will be one of bulkiest and higher buildings of the world. It will shelter 500 000 m² offices, commercial spaces like 3 000 residential apartments.
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