Bridge collapse

I don't understand Sleepy Joe's quick statement about paying for the repairs - the ship's insurance should be paying 100 %. John T.

Perhaps that should be clarified. Do you think the insurance company will be sending a check this week? Will it cover 100% of the cost to replace? Should we wait for the check to get started or start tomorrow with government funds?

While the accident will generate a complex web of claims and liability that may take years to untangle, the financial fallout is expected to fall heavily on the reinsurance industry.

"No doubt both marine insurers and reinsurers will be involved with this loss," said Loretta Worters, a spokesperson for the Insurance Information Institute.

It's been made clear in the media that the feds will pay to *expedite* the repairs - then the insurance will likely be charged the cost of said repairs. The bridge is a vital artery, the rebuilding needs to happen

Ed P wrote on 3/26/2024 7:54 PM:

It's a matter of time a large ship would hit the pier and take out the supporting truss structure (note that even the legs of the bridge are truss A-frames, not concrete columns) of the truss bridge. They built the bridge so flimsy, for convenience. No "over-engineering" at all. I blame capitalism. Award the project to the company which submits the lowest bid. Brace for more "bare minimum" American engineering come tumbling down. China is building infrastructure all over Africa and South America. Maybe pay China to "Build Back Better" for Uncle Sam.

The insurance company would fight back, the taxpayers won't.

I think the Biden Crime Family will form a new DEI construction company to do the rebuild. Maybe Mayor Pete will be the CEO? Will the new bridge look like a giant rainbow?

You seem so enamored with the way China is doing things, why don't you move there? Permanently!

Many of us have had close calls. I'm an extremely punctual person, to the point of usually being somewhat early. Only once in my life did I ever miss an airplane flight. I was a high school student visiting an out of town college to be interviewed and also to try to decide if I wanted to apply. There were accidents on the road ahead during the cab ride from my home to the airport and we were in stop and go traffic for almost an hour. I missed the plane - which crashed with no survivors during the flight that I missed. Life is just a series of serendipitous happenings.

I was going to point this out somewhere anyhow, and this seems the right spot. they didn't have ships anywhere near this big or heavy when the bridge was built. And i don't think anyone foresaw them either.

That *is* close.

Around 1986, I was on a business trip to Montreal, and in the basement of the trainstation connected to the hotel were lockers for travelers to use, and I was going to stay serveral hours after I had to check out of the hotel - but they were still going to let me use one of their bicycles.

I went to the lockers the first day to see if they were really available, then again 3 days later to put my stuff in one, and several hours later to get my stuff. It was either the next day at the same clock time I had been there, or 7 days later at that time, that Quuebec terrorists blew up the lockers, and killed people and injured more. Not as close as your near miss but it's too close for me.

Maybe this is a better point to make: I've found people use the word capitalism for all kinds of meanings, often related to money, but which are not actually capitalism. Free enterprise, free market, market system, supply and demand, and there are more even further afield I can't think of right now. I hear businesses which require no capital referred to as capitalist.

Do you honestly think everything in non-capitalist economies is well built? Those built by private builders, or only by the government? Do you think all the so-called non-capitalist countries' governments are rolling in money they overdesign what they build. Or do they have more things to spend money on than they have money to spend, and so they often build things just to what they think is a reasonable standard, or even less than that. The ugly barren apartment buildings of the Soviet Union is one example of "less than that", at least in apparance if not structural endurance.

How much could you possible know about construction throughout the world?

I have to go to New Jersey tomorrow, and at 10 PM last night google maps was still showing me the Key Bridge as one possible route.

But now it has a red exclamation mark and says it was updated 17 hours ago. That would be 6 PM yesterday but I'm sure it was 8, 9, or even 10 when it was still routing me across the bridge.

micky wrote on 3/27/2024 11:09 AM:

The red exclamati Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse Maryland, United States Updated 19 hours ago

I live in Canada, which provided sanctuary to American draft dodgers (I am so proud), and we have strict construction standards. Do you remember the Florida condo came tumbling down? If you look at the close-up photos of the pile of dirt, there were hardly any rebar or concrete. They built the condo with mostly sea sand and watered-down Elmer's glue.

We are now hearing that a project has been going on at the Delaware Memorial twin span to add protectors to the bridge column. Should be complete next year. They did foresee the need with bigger vessels going up the river.

When I pass around Baltimore going to NJ it takes me I95 through the tunnel so I never saw that bridge.

It is going to suck for people that use if for daily commute and such. It will add quite a bit of time and distance to go around. It will take from 5 to 8 years to rebuild.

You can probably pay China to build it in just one year. Look at all those artificial islands China built out of coral reefs in the middle of South China Sea in no time flat, including airports, runways, hangars, piers, and concrete buildings. China has all those dredgers, barges, and concrete mixers ready to go. Just ask them for a quote.

The river is relatively narrow compared to the South China Sea and has tidal and rip currents. The bottom is covered with a thick layer of silt. Construction also has to contend with a high volume of ships going to and from the Baltimore Port that will need to transit the construction zone. That's a completely different construction environment than the Chinese had to deal with. Also, construction costs in China are negligible. They enslave a work force and pay them nothing or next to nothing, work them long hours with minimal time off, and only have the expenses of materials and lousy food and shelter for the slaves. You're comparing apples and oranges.

I would advocate that they NOT build another bridge, but instead construct a tunnel.

I realize the bridge had served as a route for hazardous trucks that couldn't use the existing tunnels. So be it.

For them, I would recommend that they also get a small fleet of specialized boats. You know... they used to have them everywhere. Called... "ferries".

Again, only for those vehicles that would be banned from the tunnel.

They probably see the big ships.

Going back some years, Philly never had the huge ships like that and very few of any size went as far a Trenton. I imagine they have since built larger terminals towards the southern end, no room once up in the Philly/Camden area where the old terminals are.