Reports: Design flaw caused Minneapolis, Minnesota bridge to collapse

Wikinews
August 9, 2007

Investigators say that flaws in the design of the Interstate 35W bridge in Minneapolis, Minnesota may have caused it to collapse and that the design flaw is not "unique" to the Minneapolis bridge.

According to an ongoing investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the flaw was found in the steel plates connected to girders, which are large support beams used in construction and connect the plates together. It is reported that extra stress from construction equipment might have caused the plates to separate, causing the bridge to collapse.

The flaw has not yet been confirmed to be the source of the disaster, and the NTSB says that the investigation could take several months to fully be completed.

At least six people were killed and at least eight are missing, whilst over 100 are injured after the bridge collapsed on August 1.

Cars are overturned in a jumble of concrete after the I-35W bridge collapsed. Cars are turned over and pieces of highway and concrete are everywhere after the I-35W bridge collapsed in Minneapolis, Minnesota (USA) on August 1, 2007. Photo by Tony Webster View photo, 2,476KB This photograph is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 License.

This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 License.