Carlo Rex J. Iman
BSCE2-Q
GEO 11- Geology for Engineers
February 22, 2022
Assignment #1: Research Work
Find an example of civil engineering projects that fails due to geotechnical or foundation
problems. Include the following: Name of project/building, location, reasons that causes its failure
and pictures.
1. TRANSCONA GRAIN ELEVATOR
On October 18, 1913, the Canadian Pacific Railway opened the Transcona Grain Elevator in
North Transcona, Manitoba, Canada. The Transcona Grain Elevator didn't even survive a day
before foundation issues revealed; when grain was transported within, the building began to sink.
The structure sunk one foot into the earth within the first hour of unloading. The structure had been
tilted 27 degrees to the west by the next day. The researchers discovered that the foundation was
particularly unstable since it was built on layered clay with layers of silt salt throughout the layers
of clay. (Structured Foundation Repairs, 2020).
Furthermore, the particular problem of the Transcona Grain Elevator, according to Puzrin,
Alosno, and Pinyol (2010), was that the failure mechanisms of the plate loading test were
seemingly restricted to the top firmer clay layer, due to the relatively small size of the plates. A
failure mechanism forms beneath the foundation in the event of a bearing capacity breakdown.
Settlement occurs significantly faster and without a loss in soil volume. As a result, the disturbed
dirt must find an outlet, causing ground heave in the region of the building.
*A good situational example would be a third-story building that was constructed and
collapsed for about a month, due to malpractice and miscalculation of the engineer/s by only
following the possible design and layout, rather than prioritizing and analyzing the
geological properties of the location first. Without prior investigation, and neglecting the
possible failure that the building may tumble can result in casualties.
2. TACOMA NARROWS BRIDGE
The Tacoma Narrows Bridge, according to Harish (2021), is the historical term given to the
twin suspension bridge—originally completed in 1940—that spanned the Tacoma Narrows strait,
bridge spanning the Narrows of Puget Sound, linking the Olympic Peninsula with the mainland of
Washington state, U.S. (Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia, 2021). The first bridge, dubbed
"Galloping Gertie," was a watershed moment in engineering history.
The Tacoma Narrows Bridge in the state of Washington was finished and opened to traffic on
July 1st, 1940. (Harish, 2021). Four months after it opened, on November 7, 1940, the first Tacoma
Narrows Bridge collapsed owing to aeroelastic flutter in a wind of around 42 miles (67 km) per
hour (Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia, 2021).
An analysis revealed that the segment created by the highway and stiffening plate girders
(rather than web trusses) did not absorb wind turbulence. At the same time, the span's flexibility
was enhanced by the limited two-lane highway. This combination rendered the bridge very
sensitive to aerodynamic forces, which were unknown at the time (Britannica, T. Editors of
Encyclopaedia, 2021).
*Designing a bridge to be the most flexible ever built may be an ideal notion, but doing
so without considering all conceivable scenarios is a catastrophic action. Engineers of a long
bridge, for example, concluded that the design, although exceeding conventional length,
depth, and breadth ratios, was totally safe. The bridge collapsed three months later, and it
was discovered that the engineers had not adequately addressed the aerodynamic forces at
play at the location during a period of high winds. Such pressures were not typically taken
into account by engineers and designers throughout the construction process.
3. HYATT REGENCY WALKWAY
According to Online Ethics Center (n.a.), the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Kansas City, Missouri,
staged a recorded tea-dance party in their atrium lobby on July 17, 1981. With a large number of
partygoers standing and dancing on the suspended walkways, the connections holding the ceiling
rods that held up the second and fourth-floor walkways spanning the atrium broke, and both
walkways collapsed onto the crowded first-floor atrium below. The fourth-floor walkway fell into
the second-floor walkway, but the offset third-floor walkway was unharmed. According to
McFadden (2021), two walkways collapsed within the Hyatt Regency Kansas City Hotel, killing
114 people and injuring at least another 216.
During construction, an obvious design problem was discovered. According to McFadden
(2021), the initial concept intended for six steel hanger rods to go directly from the second-floor
walkway to the ceiling to provide support. The steel manufacturing contractor, however, objected
to this design since it required screw-threaded rods to keep the fourth-floor walkway in place. The
contractor recognized this as a possible hazard and presented a new plan: a set of tie rods
connecting the fourth-floor walkway to the ceiling, as well as a separate set connecting the secondfloor walkway to the fourth-floor walkway. Because to modifications in tie rod design, the rods
carried more weight/stress than they should have. The design was eventually implemented, which
meant that the second-floor walkway support was linked to the fourth-floor walkway.
In a nutshell, the tie rods link the walkways. So, in the end, both the rods and the beam were
carrying excess weight and were under undue stress. The connections broke dramatically, and the
bridges on the fourth and second floors fell to the floor of the busy atrium below (McFadden,
2021).
*When constructing any walkway or footbridge, it is critical to first examine the
materials, designs, and plan; if there are any additional modifications before construction, it
is critical to request a consultation with all of the specialists involved in the process. A
situational example would be a footbridge built to an Obstacle Course Facility, with two
distinct bridges based on a different high level and an accurate position from above and
below. To link both footbridges to the roof, a distinct set of materials is required to bear the
weight and manage the bridge's necessary capacity. However, due to a change in plans and
the application of the design being envisaged, just one set of materials is used to interconnect
and keep both bridges in place by connecting them to the ceiling. The materials used to
support the bridges may not be able to withstand the weight of the people crossing the
bridges if this technique is used. As a result, it may collapse, and casualties are likely.
Note:
(*) with BOLD font style symbolizes the situational example related to each example.
References
Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia. (2021, February 11). Tacoma Narrows Brigde. Retrieved
from Encyclopedia Britannica: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Tacoma-NarrowsBridge
Harish, A. (2021, January 28). Why the Tacoma Narrows Bridge Collapsed: An Engineering
Analysis. Retrieved from SIMSCALE: https://www.simscale.com/blog/2018/07/tacomanarrows-bridge-collapse/
McFadden, C. (2021, February 10). Understanding the Tragic Hyatt Regency Walkway Collapse.
Retrieved from Interesting Engineering: https://interestingengineering.com/understandinghyatt-regency-walkway-collapse
Online Ethics Center. (n.d.). Hyatt Regency Walkway Collapse. Retrieved from Online Ethics
Center for Engineering and Science: https://onlineethics.org/cases/hyatt-regencywalkway-collapse
Puzrin, A. M., Alosno, E., & Pinyol, N. M. (2010). Geomechanics of Failure. Springer.
Structured Foundation Repairs. (2020, April 10). Extreme Example of Foundation Failure.
Retrieved
from
Structured
Foundation
Repairs:
https://www.structuredfoundation.com/blog/extreme-example-of-foundation-failure/