Inadequate Inspection and Missing Bolts behind Japanese Tunnel Collapse
A deadly tunnel collapse in Japan over the weekend left 9 people dead after 360 feet of concrete ceiling slabs fell, trapping vehicles and their occupants, and a fire broke out that consumed much of the wreckage. The horrific carnage in Japan’s Sasago Tunnel left 5 charred bodies in a single station wagon, 3 others in another burned vehicle, and 1 burned to death in a truck.
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Investigators believe Weak or Missing Hardware Connectors might be to Blame for the Deadly Sasago Tunnel Collapse
Early investigations are pointing to missing anchor bolts designed to fasten the concrete slabs securely to the tunnel ceiling. Investigators spotted areas of the concrete slabs where the bolts had loosened and fallen out. They are uncertain yet as to whether traffic vibrations in the tunnel over the years loosened the bolts or whether the natural aging of the concrete slabs and bolts led to the deadly decay.
Our structural collapse injury lawyers point out that the Sasago Tunnel was built in 1977 and the bolts had not been replaced in all that time. The weekend’s deadly tunnel collapse has led to emergency inspections of 49 other traffic tunnels in Japan that have similar ceiling construction. (Source: Hilary Whiteman, CNN, 12/3/12)
Inadequate Inspections of the Old Traffic Tunnel Might have Missed Signs of Imminent Failure
NEXCO, the private company that now manages many of Japan’s traffic tunnels admits that the hammer tapping method of inspecting the concrete ceiling of the old tunnel had not been conducted. The company was using infrared imaging to inspect the tunnels because it takes much less time and money. The infrared imaging is supposed to show a temperature differential between secure parts of the concrete ceiling and compromised parts of the structure.
Our structural collapse injury lawyers suggest that the infrared imaging method might be inadequate, as the last such inspection was only two months ago. The manual hammer tapping method is much more effective and allows inspectors to get a very close look at areas of the tunnel ceiling.
Hardware Connection Failure is a Primary Cause of Potentially Deadly Structural Collapses
One of the primary causes of deadly structural collapses is failure of the connections designed to hold parts of the structure in place. Sometimes the cause is poor building practice, such as a use of nails rather than bolts, failure to anchor bolts to solid structural members, or poor spacing of the hardware connectors and structural members. Sometimes it’s the sudden breaking or failure of the hardware connections due to gradual weakening, loosening or corrosion over time.