One Dead, Four Injured in Brighton Beach Building Collapse

[abusementpark]

http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/201...beach-building-collapse/?mod=google_news_blog

 

[msquared48]

"The collapse occurred after fresh concrete was improperly poured on the third floor before the second floor."

Sounds funny to me.

Sounds more like shored vs unshored, but we'll see.

Mike McCann
MMC Engineering

 

[abusementpark]

Yea, I couldn't figure what actually happened.

 

[Ron]

Mike...agree..sounds more like a shoring issue than a placement sequencing issue.

 

[MJB315]

Did the columns require the second floor to be poured (thereby braced by the rigid diaphragm) prior to the weight of the third floor being added?


"We shape our buildings, thereafter they shape us." -WSC

 

[ztengguy]

That picture looks like light gauge joists and walls. on the right looks like the wall buckled out..maybe not tied back correct to the deck, or without concrete, no tieback

 

[Teguci]

I am guessing that the forensic engineer that gets the city side should have no problem running a buckling analysis on columns with twice the designed unbraced length. Its the contractor's forensic engineer that will need to be creative.

 

[MiketheEngineer]

Buildings are always the MOST dangerous while they are being built then when they enter service.

When was the last time you EVER heard of a building just falling down - other than an earthquake or 200 years old with no maintenance??

 

[bridgebuster]

This was in yesterday's NY Daily News. It offers an opinion on why they were pouring from top down.

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york...history-flouting-regulations-article-1.975403

 

[msquared48]

As for lateral bracing of the columns at the second floor, I would consider 16 or 18 gage metal deck with the supporting beam structure to function as a viable diaphagm, and, as such, providing lateral support, if properly welded off per the plans....

Mike McCann
MMC Engineering

 

[TXStructural]

I doubt that whether the third or second floor is placed first makes much difference in this case, since they were placing concrete on both floors on the same day. I have never worked a project where we allowed this practice. The steel and light gauge would have to have been designed to take two floors of wet concrete as a live load, which is not something I would design unless that sequence was part of the project up front.

 

[SteelPE]

Mike,

Last winter a whole bunch of structures collapsed in the NE due to heavy snow.