beam me down, smokie

[alocispepraluger102]

Posted on Thu, Oct. 18, 2007

Beam plunges off bridge into bay

By RYAN LaFONTAINE

rlafontaine@sunherald.com

BILOXI -- A 100-ton concrete girder used to support a section of the new Biloxi-Ocean Springs bridge splashed into the water last week. Whether the massive beam simply fell off the bridge or spontaneously cracked in two is a question some motorists want answered before they take the 1.6-mile drive over the bay.

Turns out both explanations could be accurate.

The state Department of Transportation said the bridge is structurally sound, the other 781 beams on the bridge are just fine and the span will be safe to drive on when one side opens next month.

Following the Tuesday morning incident, MDOT issued a one-paragraph public statement, saying the beam had been temporarily set on the eastbound side of the bridge and "fell into the Biloxi Bay."

No one was hurt and the cause of the incident was investigated, MDOT said.

Two friends who were fishing in the bay at least 500 yards away from the construction site are telling a different story.

"Water went up in the air, splashing all over the place, and that beam just broke in half and came down in a V shape," said Henry Humphrey, a retired industrial engineer who was fishing in a small boat with his friend Ron McCravey.

The two men claim they were looking toward the bridge at that exact moment, when, without warning, the beam snapped in the middle and tumbled into the water.

McCravey and Humphrey said there were no construction workers or industrial cranes near the beam when it split.

"It was already sitting there, already mounted on both ends and it just broke," McCravey said. "It was breaking before it hit the water."

Other witnesses who were near the bay reported seeing the same thing. If the beam really did unexpectedly give out, Humphrey wonders what would happen to similar beams once 30,000 vehicles resume their daily commute across the bridge.

MDOT and the Federal Highway Administration said the massive concrete beam hardly just gave out and collapsed.

The beams are shaped like giant yardsticks; when laid upright one beam can support a tremendous amount of weight, but when laid flat the beam is not even strong enough to support its own weight.

"The beams are very strong if you can keep them in a vertical position," said Wayne Brown, MDOT's Southern District chief. "If they fall flat they will very likely crack in half."

Brown said workers nearby were conducting post-tension testing and other work that requires vibrating parts of the bridge. The vibration could have caused the beam to topple over.

The FHA, the federal agency that investigated the incident, confirmed MDOT's original statement. Doug Hecox, an FHA spokesman, said the beam was not fastened in place when it fell off the bridge.

"From what we know, the beam was put up temporarily just long enough for (workers) to move into position," Hecox said. "They're not sure whether it was vibration or wind or what, but something caused it to fall."

Got bridge photos?

The Sun Herald is looking for photos of the Biloxi-Ocean Springs bridge, before and after the storm.

If you have photos you'd like to share, e-mail them to Photo Editor Drew Tarter at dtarter@sunherald.com

© 2007 Sun Herald. All Rights Reserved.

http://www.sunherald.com

[MoGrubb]

Structurally sound? I don't know, if those fishermen's account is accurate, the beam broke, then fell, I'd question the sound part.

[BruceH]

And the damn bridge is NEW???? WTF?

[Shawn]

My Mother lives in Ocean Springs...thankfully she won't have to drive over that bridge very often.

[BERIGAN]

are the beams made in China? Perhaps it just needed another coat of lead paint. All the advancements in technology, and bridges built 70-100 years ago are still better built than those of today.

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

are the beams made in China? Perhaps it just needed another coat of lead paint. All the advancements in technology, and bridges built 70-100 years ago are still better built than those of today.

MG