开云体育

ctrl + shift + ? for shortcuts
© 2025 开云体育
  1. JMT
  2. Messages
Single Messages Topics Expanded Polls

Re: Speculating on the SFSJ bridge

 

开云体育

An older and longer bridge on the MFSJ failed back in 1997, they managed to get it back into service the next year before proper repairs could be made. While I don't know if the failure this year bridge is in good enough condition for temporary repairs it is at least an interesting read. Click on the photos for... more photos


From: [email protected] <[email protected]> on behalf of Mike Sherman <msherman55@...>
Sent: Saturday, April 22, 2023 6:53:35 PM
To: [email protected] <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: [JMT-groups.io] Speculating on the SFSJ bridge
?
I'm reading the photo as:
-right (downstream) handrail buckled and kinked outwards severely, twisting the bridge
-left handrail rotated about 45 degrees in the middle, with perhaps a kink in the middle of the deck (seen in the shadow in the river)
-seems still anchored on both abutments.

I agree that it still seems quite above the river. I doubt it is safe to cross. Restoring steel that has been severely kinked like this seems like quite a challenge, especially in the backcountry.

I'm quite curious how such a seemingly robust bridge could fail like this; it seemed to be in good shape when I crossed it last summer. Does anybody have any ideas on if/when/where an official report might be published? If this could fail, what about the other bridges that have similar designs?

Luckily, failed steel bridges often retain clues that allow reconstruction of the collapse. Such was the case in 2007 when the I35 bridge here in Minneapolis dropped into the Mississippi river.

Mike Sherman
On 04/22/2023 7:54 PM Chris Armstrong <sacarmstrong@...> wrote:


Ok, admitedlly pure speculation on may part but I've zoomed in on the picture of the SFSJ River bridge and to me, it looks like the bridge is still suspended well above the river. From the overhead shot it looks to be sitting in the river itself but look at the shadow of the bridge and it appears that is not the case. Anyone else come to the same conclusion? Did just the downstream sided railing fail? Certainly it's gonna take folks getting in there to know for sure, and perhaps its in a precarious condition regardless, but perhaps a ray of hope?


Join [email protected] to automatically receive all group messages.