Second (2nd) narrow bridge collapse Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Second (2nd) narrow bridge collapse - Essay Example The cause of accidents in the construction of bridges has been attributed mainly to the error committed during the project design. The errors are caused by negligence in the side of the contractors. The fatalities in the construction industry are caused by failure to comply with the industry’s safety and health guidelines. It is important to adhere to safety and health directives and guidelines to avert future disasters such as the second narrow bridge accident. Wienand and Zunde (147-158) confirmed that the second narrow bridge was made of steel metals, timber and reinforced concrete. According to Akesson (124), the construction of new highway bridge in British Columbia began in November 1957. The second narrow bridge had six lanes and was a continuous truss bridge (in all 1992 meter long) with the main 335-navigation span. It was also a cantilever construction having two anchor spans, (142 m each). The second narrow bridge had lanes specifically for the pedestrians and bicycles. It was the second bridge constructed at the Second (east) Narrows of Burrard Inlet in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It was named the Second Narrows Bridge as it connects Vancouver to the north shore of Burrard Inlet, which includes the District of North Vancouver, the City of North Vancouver, and West Vancouver. It was constructed adjacent to the older Second Narrows Bridge, which is currently an exclusively rail bridge. The bridge was a steel truss cantile ver bridge, designed by Swan Wooster Engineering Co. Ltd. On June 17, 1958, the north anchor span through failure of the temporary truss, collapsed without warning and caused death of the sixteen workers and two engineers. Akesson (125) said that on the fateful afternoon of June 17, 1958, the crane was stretched to join the two chords of the arch that was under construction from the north side of the new bridge. Just before