Everyone ok at the Factory?

[alantig]

I’m not sure there is a bumper that could stop something that big.

From what I saw the ship was going 9 mph. If it didn't stop it, it would have slowed it down enough that it probably wouldn't have taken the bridge down. That would have allowed them to repair it for much less than rebuilding the whole thing. Those huge concrete stops are going to stop more than you may think.

I saw something else today that said even if they'd had something like that, a direct hit at that speed would likely have taken the pillar out anyway.

One of the things that really struck me (no pun intended) watching the video was how high the right end of the bridge jumped.

 

[deepender]

From what I saw the ship was going 9 mph. If it didn't stop it, it would have slowed it down enough that it probably wouldn't have taken the bridge down. That would have allowed them to repair it for much less than rebuilding the whole thing. Those huge concrete stops are going to stop more than you may think.

Imagine for a minute how much weight we are talking about. It’s around the size of an aircraft carrier, and loaded stem to stern with heavy freight. The inertia generated by that much weight just ain’t gonna be stopped too easy even if it was going 9 mph.

 

[Moondog Wily]

Best wishes to all impacted by they HUGE event! Here are some specs I have read that I found interesting.

Ship weighed 213 million pounds.

Maersk was sanctioned by the US Govt in 2023 for stifling whistleblowers. They had implemented a policy where any concerns (safety or otherwise) needed to be reported directly to the corporation rather than the coast guard or any government agencies. This policy was in violation of maritime law.

Estimates to rebuild the bridge are in the 2 to 15 year range.

This bridge was built 47 years ago and was NOT built with any support redundancy. Designers claim that this more modern way of building bridges (with redundancy) would have prevented the collapse.

Insurance estimates are looking to be the most costly maritime insurance payout(s) in history.

Some of those cargo containers look like soda cans dangling from the ship and bridge wreckage.

Some of the things that amazed me after reviewing photos/footage were how tall the bridge was and how HUGE of a task it is going to be to clear that bridge out of the water. This structure was very tall (looked to me to be about 100ft but that is just a guesstimate, I have not seen a number on that) and the span that collapsed was 986 feet long (which the article I read claimed as "almost 3 football fields when in fact it would be "greater than 3 football fields"). The thought of deconstructing a structure like this is mind boggling. To have to do it in the river is just Herculean. I wonder if they are going to "float" some of that stuff away. They talked today about about all the barges that are going into the area to clear stuff, but rather than load stuff on to a boat, I hope they use the inflatables to float some of that stuff out of there. They have not yet called to consult me on the best path (nobody ever does and the world would be a better place if everyone did consult with me first) ;~))

Also looked to me like it was about 20 miles as the crow flies from where PRS factory is. I can't imagine after looking at the maps of the area, how big of a hassle this is going to be for all those traveling in this area! Huge disruption!

So lucky this happened at 1:30 am when there was low traffic (even though they were able to shut down access to bridge prior to collapse).

Dali, you got some splainin' to do!!!

 

[Mark Ray]

Another stat I caught last night was that there was 1.5 million gallons of fuel on board! DAMN!

 

[ViperDoc]

Don't be surprised by a Maersk bankruptcy filing in the near future.

Even if power goes out, those boats are supposed to have failsafe mechanisms to at least steer itself appropriately, and in particular, not directly into a f7cking bridge tower. There are *cell phone videos* circulating around the internet. Why were you filming a transoceanic barge at 1:30 AM, you might ask? CURIOUS INDEED.

 

[Moondog Wily]

Don't be surprised by a Maersk bankruptcy filing in the near future.

Even if power goes out, those boats are supposed to have failsafe mechanisms to at least steer itself appropriately, and in particular, not directly into a f7cking bridge tower. There are *cell phone videos* circulating around the internet. Why were you filming a transoceanic barge at 1:30 AM, you might ask? CURIOUS INDEED.

Read in an article today that lights had started to flicker back on just before crash as they believe the emergency generator(s) were trying to kick in, but the engine was never restarted ;~((

I agree, Maersk, and possibly their insurance companie(s) may be filing for protection!