Underdesigned Gusset Plates Cited by NTSB in I-35W Bridge Collapse Investigation

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) issued recommendations on January 15 in informing the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) of the interim findings of its investigation of the August 1, 2007, collapse of the Minneapolis bridge that carried Interstate 35W over the Mississippi, a trage...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inCivil engineering (New York, N.Y. 1983) Vol. 78; no. 2; p. 10
Main Author Shuster, Laurie A
Format Magazine Article
LanguageEnglish
Published New York American Society of Civil Engineers 01.02.2008
Subjects
Accident investigations
Bridges
Civil engineering
Failure
United States > US
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Summary:The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) issued recommendations on January 15 in informing the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) of the interim findings of its investigation of the August 1, 2007, collapse of the Minneapolis bridge that carried Interstate 35W over the Mississippi, a tragedy that killed 13 people and injured 145 others. The board discovered underdesigned gusset plates that fractured early in the collapse. To determine why the gussets were undersized, the NTSB and the FHWA examined the design methodologies used at the time as well as design documents that included some of the original engineering calculations. These generally indicated that sound methodology had been used but detailed calculations for the main truss gusset plates could not be located. As a result, the board has not yet determined whether the error was due to a calculation mistake, a drafting error, or some other error in the design process.
ISSN:0885-7024
2381-0688