***You could contrast the damage with the last five year inspection? Does the NHDOT take pictures during their inspection?
The traffic flaggers are saying the bridges are going to get a 4 on a scale of 10. Two and three get you a bridge shutdown.
I doubt Hyle Tanner would ever get another job if they crossed the powerful NHDOT. It looks like NHDOT predetermined the grade would be a 4 before the job, no matter what the real grade was.
The last time I talked to the NHDOT inspectors about the corrosion in the cross-arm and connectors, they told me these bridge pieces where only used in construction. It is pure bunk! It's the very important bridge stabilization and stiffener pieces.
In 1983, traveling to Vermont from New York, in two vehicles, partner in Datsun truck, me in Honda civic with 3 year old in back seat, vehicles loaded, we crossed over the Miamus Bridge in Connecticut. We had agreed to meet at a stop further up the highway. First thing I said to my partner was...did you feel the bridge shaking when we crossed over? He said no, and I told him I thought it might have been a car issue but seems to be alright now. It was a mystery but I found it disconcerting to say the least. We were here for two weeks, far from the Madding Crowd and far from a telephone or newspapers and no tv or radio in a rural location. Our first summer visitors arrived and told us of the mess it was to get from New York having to detour due to the bridge collapse. We were stunned to say the least since we then found out it had collapsed just a few hours after we passed over the bridge. Too close for comfort. My little Honda registered that something was amiss. Later, it was discovered that the regular bird count of Starlings who nested in the bridge had suddenly dropped way way down to very few, and they couldn't figure out why. Now we know the Starlings were the canaries in the coal mine. Perhaps a similar survey of the Hinsdale bridge would discover a similar warning? All the best to you. Crazy or not.
ReplyDeleteThe canaries in the coal mines are bridge vibration detectors and transmitters. They could going to NHDOT headquarters and then freely given to anyone over the internet. It could be like a cell phone with a big battery pack or solar powered. We could measure all sorts of vibrations and swaying on the bridge. But these NHDOT guys want to be gods over everything bridges and everything they control.
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