Pezzy Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 December 12, 2006 Concrete from bridge smashes SUV CN says bridge safe after concrete falls on SUV By LAURA CZEKAJ, OTTAWA SUN A rail overpass on Riverside Dr., where a chunk of concrete fell off and crashed through a passing vehicle's windshield yesterday was visually inspected two weeks ago and deemed safe, according to a CN Rail spokesman. At around 8:55 a.m., a 44-year-old Ottawa man was driving his Nissan Pathfinder in the northbound lanes when the concrete, weighing an estimated 14 lbs. and about the size of a shoe box, slammed into his windshield on the passenger side. The driver was alone in the SUV and was shaken but uninjured. "The company did not see any exceptions at that time (of the inspection) but we are following up with our own structural engineer who will be on site," said CN Rail spokesman Mark Hallman. Any sections of concrete in danger of falling were chipped away and removed by the engineers yesterday. The condition of the overpass will be monitored, said Hallman. National Capital Commission records show the overpass was given to CN Rail in 1972 and is CN's responsibility, an NCC spokesman said. Hallman said ownership of the bridge is under review but it is not owned by the NCC or CN, even though CN has been responsible for inspection and maintenance. Although CN Rail owns the tracks on the bridge, they are only used by Via Rail passenger trains. No freight trains use the overpass. "From our review of the situation, the bridge is fully structurally sound," said Hallman. A Via Rail official said the steel and concrete overpass was deemed structurally sound immediately after the incident and trains continued to use it throughout the day en route to Toronto. The falling concrete left debris on the roadway and raised concerns about more pieces falling onto Riverside Dr. The normally busy commuter artery was shut down in both directions for almost six hours so that the overpass could be inspected by CN Rail structural engineers from Montreal. The road reopened at 2:45 p.m. There were no injuries in the incident but it did revive memories of the collapse of a Quebec highway overpass on Sept. 29. The 36-year-old Laval overpass crashed down on motorists, trapping and killing five people. During excavation of the debris, a second overpass built at the same time was torn down as a precaution. from: http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2006/12...pf-2753904.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
navygz19 Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 Yikes, that'll wake you up. Very lucky indeed. An inceident similar to this in Boston (though it was one of the tiles in the tunnel ceiling) happened recently. Unfortunately the driver was killed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bear claw Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 :o Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trainman Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 Too much like that Laval one for sure. And CN has had issues with its inspection in the past, a couple of years back they inspected a wood trestle east of Prince George, BC only to have a train go thorough it and catch fire, killing 3. And they said the same thing then, no problems when it was inspected. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NismoSkyZ Posted December 12, 2006 Share Posted December 12, 2006 Im suprised it didnt just bouce off like one of those tundra comericals very lucky indeed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Pickles Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 "From our review of the situation, the bridge is fully structurally sound," WFT??? A piece of freakin concrete FELL OFF. Sructurally sound my ASS. Sounds like the goverment around here though. Its gotta kill somebody or many people before they pay any attention. You guys had an overpass collapse too? I saw no coverage on US new. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pezzy Posted December 14, 2006 Author Share Posted December 14, 2006 There have been two around the montreal area in the past year or so... as if the roads there arent scary enough with the drivers, you gotta make sure the bridges and overpasses arent out to get you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trainman Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 You guys had an overpass collapse too? I saw no coverage on US new. Here is the story: CBC News story on Laval overpass collapse This is the photo in the article Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zonianbrat Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 I do not have time to find the link but like a year or two ago while Denver was in the middle of the "T-Rex" project A HUGE Girder which ran teh length of the bridge fell off and killed a family of four in an SUV. After a month of the initial investigation they tried to blame the 911 operator!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was effin stupid NOw I hear the investigation is finally coming to a close. I will try to look up the info later I gotta go do some work now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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