In 1938 or so, Washington State Department of Highways bridge engineer Clark Eldridge came up with a plan to span the Tacoma Narrows with a 5000 foot two-lane suspension bridge, which when completed would be the third longest suspension bridge in the world. Between 1938 and 1939, numerous bridge experts reviewed and modified Eldridge’s design. At that time, the appearance of being streamlined was considered important, and the increasing popularity of automobile transportation and the decline of the railroads lessened the load requirements for the bridge. One of the engineers, Leon Moisseiff, made the significant substitution of a open stiffening truss with a shallow plate girder, resulting in a much lighter and streamlined looking bridge.
This short piece of film has become a classic example of engineering failure, shown to mechanical engineering students as a vivid example of what happens when you don’t pay attention to the details. Of course, the Government commissioned a study of the bridge's failure. Ultimately the original designers were exonerated, and the resonance theory of failure advanced. In other respects, the report was vague and inconclusive (in true government fashion), leaving the exact cause of failure as a subject of debate and study for more than forty years.
Many years ago, I saw this piece of film on TV as part of the You Asked For It show. I was completely enthralled by this brief encounter and always wanted more. I’ve traveled Gertie’s replacement countless times, and I’m happy to report that the new bridge exhibits none of the unusual behavior of its more famous but short-lived predecessor.
Now, thanks the the Internet, I have found a number
of web sites that explain (in painful detail) what happened that fateful
day. Explore the links below and enjoy. Many have animation or movie clips
where you can see Gertie doing her thing.
In 1979, a severe windstorm and worker oversight (access hatches into the pontoons were left open, allowing water to enter. Mark this; it's a continuing theme) caused the west-end of the bridge to sink into Hood Canal. Read a bit more about this failure here. The Hood Canal Bridge does have an interesting website, which I recommend, especially if you're planning to cross it. You would think that the state's Department of Transportation would learn from its mistakes, but...I guess that with a bureauacracy, anything is possible. Read on.
In 1990 the Lacey V. Murrow Bridge sank while undergoing renovation as part of the completion of the western terminus of I90. An additional floating bridge was contructed adjacent to it and carrying traffic. The plan was to renovate the original bridge, and ultimately it would carry traffic eastbound while the new bridge would handle westbound and HOV traffic. On Thanksgiving Day 1990, a severe storm with high rainfall, high winds, heaped insult onto injury and the bridge sank. The engineering failure analysis can be found here. You'll see the continuing theme re-emerge here, as pontoon A5 submerges below the waves of Lake Washington.
The Department of Transportation has lost 3 major bridges in 50 years. Their expertise doesn't end with bridges; they also manage the State Ferry System, which is considered an extension of the highway department. Neither does their expertise with failure, as the new ferries purchased in the last 30 years have been plagued with a variety of propulsion system problems. But that's for another page somewhere else because this page is about bridges. And then there's the small matter of freeway design. I could go on...
Oh yes, at present, all of the floating bridges are still floating,
and the Tacoma Narrows Bridge is still suspending.
Follow this link
for a more detailed account of the early days of the Narrows Bridge, the
story of its creation, demise, and replacement. There is a table giving
numerous bridge specifications and underwater maps showing the placement
of the wreckage of the original span, now a marine hostel.
The Narrows Bridge community has errected this very complete site about their favorite bridge. There's information about the proposed third (second?) bridge here. (There's a Java-enabled version that you can access by going back to the root site). Lots of pictures and links. Very nicely done.
One of the theories given for the bridge's failure was resonance; that the wind flowing through the deck of the bridge excited the structure to its natural resonance, causing the failure. This link explores that theory.
Doug Smith, a fourth year student at Carleton University in Ottawa studied the bridge's failure for a class project. Some photographs and text from his report were lifted and presented here. You'll also find a link to a camera shop in Tacoma selling a videotape (not Prof. Farquharson's) of the bridge's last moments.
Mark Ketchum's bridge failure site. He explores not only the TNB failure, but also other bridge failures. The Billah and Scanlon paper from the American Journal of Physics can be downloaded from his site.
Here is a Freshman Feature from the University of Iowa. It cites references refuting the resonance theory and introduces a new one.
This paper, from the Undergraduate Engineering Review, (University of Texas @ Austin) explores and evaluates the theories of the failure. There is a good glossary of terms as well as many references.
Want to build a bridge? Explore different bridge types and learn how they work to solve the problem of spanning two points in space.
The Context for
World Heritage Bridges explores bridge building throughout the world,
from ancient times to present. This is a site worthy of your time.
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