AAh...The obvious reason here... The project was in Atlanta, home of the CDC. Obviously a killer virus got loose and infected the computer of the design engineer.
they were placing concrete but the truck doesn't appear to have anything to do with it. i will not speculate on the exact cause but can guess who (or group) will swing for this one. it will be ugly since several others that lived are critical with brain/spine injuries. the companies involved are "good" companies and you got to feel for the workers that lived through seeing this happen to their coworkers. i've had a superintendent killed on my jobsite before and can relate i suppose. i suspect there will be big, big lawsuits and/or fines on this one...just a hunch. i suspect we are about to see how litigation and special inspections co-exist together. all you architects, engineers, contractors and testing firms out there keep an eye on this one and see what could easily happen to you.
This seems to be the case in most major construction collapses, the temporary support doesn't receive the same design and erection attention as the final structure.
interesting cycle of how these things progress. the first day, the news was all over the story talking about everyone that was hurt and providing every little details that they could get out of anyone that was there, lived nearby, or thought they knew what happened. the contractor and owner were initially all over the news expressing their sorrow and noting how this is terrible. the engineer hasn't said anything as far as i've heard (good for them). within 24 hours, it appears that the contractor's lawyer has told them to shut up and quit talking to the media. the last comment i heard from the contractor was that they the construction was following the design of an engineer (i interpretted this to be posturing for lawsuit). the family of the deceased said on camera that the worker killed had indicated concern over the spacing of the temporary bracing (that it was spaced too far apart). the only information about the killed worker was that he was placing concrete so it seems a little sketchy at this point as to whether the guy actually made the claim or whether he was even competetant enough/in a position to make adequately make such an assessment. i fully expect that additional accusations will magically surface in the coming days/weeks. i also expect others to be fingered as the ones responsible or partially responsible for the collapse (i'll wait to comment on that to see if it happens like i think it might). it's everyone for themselves at this point and the lawyers will be having a field day very soon if not already. everyone involved (except for the poor immigrant worker that died) has bigtime money so they have big targets on their back...perhaps rightfully so or maybe not since the actual "facts" have not yet been released. i'm willing to bet that this incident will be discussed for quite some time.
![[smarty]](/data/assets/smilies/smarty.gif "[smarty] [smarty]")
