Trailer Brings Down Part Of Pedestrian Bridge In Bangkok

[Soutpeel]

Is anybody else wondering just how stable and robust these over bridges are?

Based on the aftermath in the picture neither stable or robust...these are precast concrete section, quick to put up...quick to come down

[Soutpeel]

Is there any rebar in that bridge? How fast was the truck going to pull down that bridge? Should a bridge fall down that easily?

Cue the resident TV structural engineering experts...

I am more curious to know what this "oil rigging" equipment was on the trailer...

[Curt1591]

The driver Thanongsak Sathitpao has been charged with causing death through carelessness.

Yet, they are still "investigating" the Red Bull case!

[Orac]

Although this death may be seen to be an accident, and therefore reasonably 'sad', is it not also the case (for which there will never be evidence) that the driver of the pickup truck may have been following too close to the vehicle which caused the walkway to fall?

'Keeping your distance' seems something which Thai drivers never EVER think about.

Is there any evidence that the pick up was even on the same side of the road as the truck?

The pick up was in the right hand lane so, I assume, in the process of passing the convoy.

[Greer]

Terribly sad that a driver was caught up in this accident, and died as a result. My condolences to his family and friends.

Regarding the bridge, the precast section that fell sits on the supports each side, keyed into the supporting lip, but I always assumed that they are also bolted into place to prevent sideways movement. If they are, then the bridge must have been hit pretty hard, when you consider both the friction and inertia that must be overcome to move a 30 ton bridge section like that.

From the report, it sounds as if they were moving fairly quickly, but when carrying something big and strong enough to cause that sort of accident, I would expect them to be moving fairly slowly.

Still, when all is said and done, a person died as a result, and that is not acceptable.

[Potosi]

Is there any rebar in that bridge? How fast was the truck going to pull down that bridge? Should a bridge fall down that easily?

Of course. A 30 ton segment came down. The truck and it's load were probably way heavier, possibly in excess of 100 tons. I wonder why they tried to pass underneath a bridge with a clearance of 5 metres with a load 6 metres tall? I hope the insurance refuses to pay, and the transport business goes bust for the sheer stupidity not to check the route in advance.

[Pib]

For most of the walkover bridges I don't think they are bolted down...they fit in a keyed slot like mention in Greer's above post. Everyone should take a look the next time they drive under/use on of these bridges....they are not immovable objects. The sheer weight of the walkover bridge section keeps it in place even during earthquakes. But when a heavy, fast moving object hits the bridge it's a little bit like a bowling ball hit pins....the pins move away.

I lived in locations in the U.S. where accidents like this has happened....usually heavy machinery, like maybe a large backhoe, being carried on a flatbed and the walkover bridge was completely brought down when the flatbed hit the bridge going around 45MPH. I still remember the last accident where the trucking company didn't get the required permit and basically the driver didn't now how high the walkover bridges were (just assumed they were all high enough) and he actually damaged a couple bridges by slightly hitting/scraping them as he went under them, but one bridge was just too low and was brought down when it was hit...and the truck flatbed was also brought to a quick stop. The news reports said the clearance was one foot too low.

[petedk]

Not sure if it made a difference or not, but the "police" the transport company "hired" to escort them were not the normal highway police who usually do the escort stuff.

The police were freelancing apparently and may NOT have known that route.

Read the last paragraph carefully.

They can still be on duty...it's just the company must pay/reimburse the police dept for the transport assistance.

At least one error in the article as Borommaratchachonnani Road is over here in western Bangkok not eastern Bangkok....but this is a Nation article.

Borommaratchachonnani Road is in western Bangkok but I just walked past Thong Lor police station and in front of the building is what am sure is the truck involved in this incident. I recognised it from the photo in the other newspaper as the front is all crushed down. I didn't have my mobile with me or I would have taken a photo.

Seems a bit morbid to go back and take a photo.

[animatic]

As police escort for the extra large portage job it was their responsibility

to make sure the route and the cargo fit together.

That is the point of the exercise, take them on the route that works.

Clearly the police in the car did NOT DO THEIR JOB,

and when they realised they had cause this calamity,

because of their negligence, they split.

RIP the poor guy just going about his business in his truck.

Edited May 11, 2013 by animatic

[HarryMilton]

Although this death may be seen to be an accident, and therefore reasonably 'sad', is it not also the case (for which there will never be evidence) that the driver of the pickup truck may have been following too close to the vehicle which caused the walkway to fall?

'Keeping your distance' seems something which Thai drivers never EVER think about.

The pick-up was probably in next lane to the convoy, if you look at the picture there appears to be damage to the bridge to the left of the pick-up possibly caused by the load striking it.

[thaicbr]

Just went passed the accident scene. All the debris has been cleared away. The trucks and loads are still there getting numerous measurements taken. I think it must be a new tractor unit as NO damage to that.

One point. Out of 5 foot bridges along Bororamachi before this one ONLY one had a Max height sign(5.5m) The rest nothing. Also the road was resurfaced a few months ago and is a bit hilly/mound in places

Sent from my i-mobile i-STYLE Q6

[Scott]

What was a huge oil-rigging machine doing in the area? How did they get it there without taking out the bridge?

[Pib]

As police escort for the extra large portage job it was their responsibility

to make sure the route and the cargo fit together.

That is the point of the exercise, take them on the route that works.

Clearly the police in the car did NOT DO THEIR JOB,

and when they realised they had cause this calamity,

because of their negligence, they split.

RIP the poor guy just going about his business in his truck.

Not to be augmentative but I bet it's the trucking company's responsibility to ensure they can clear objects along the route like walkover bridges; the police are only there to help clear the way of traffic and assist in any accidents/issues that might arise during the trip. Hopefully the police did ask how high was the load so he could provide an extra set of eyes for bridge clearance (if the bridges height was clearly marked), but he would no doubt be relying totaling on what the trucker told him for load height versus the police doing an actual measurement.

[Scott]

My father worked for a power company. When a large object was moved--such as a house, it was the (moving) company that had to determine the height, width, weight of the load. The highway department was involved, the police/highway patrol were involved as well as other agencies that might be affected. A permit was granted for the move.

When the load came to the power lines, the power company already knew if they were going to be able to raise the power cables or whether the power lines would have to be cut and then the structure moved past. The consumers were notified of the impending power outage, usually at least a week in advance, sometimes more. They were also told how long the disruption would be.

Sometimes the road was completely closed, if it was a large enough structure, but arrangements had to be made to allow for normal traffic to pass. Commercial vehicles were not permitted until the structure was moved.

The only thing the police did was what the police do best, and that is direct traffic and keep the public safe--at least they do that well in some places.

Edited May 11, 2013 by Scott

[bkkgriz]

Is there any rebar in that bridge? How fast was the truck going to pull down that bridge? Should a bridge fall down that easily?

Cue the resident TV structural engineering experts...

I am more curious to know what this "oil rigging" equipment was on the trailer...

I'm no expert. I am really curious about how well built the foot bridges are.

That is why I am asking questions, not making declarative statements.

[bkkgriz]

Terribly sad that a driver was caught up in this accident, and died as a result. My condolences to his family and friends.

Regarding the bridge, the precast section that fell sits on the supports each side, keyed into the supporting lip, but I always assumed that they are also bolted into place to prevent sideways movement. If they are, then the bridge must have been hit pretty hard, when you consider both the friction and inertia that must be overcome to move a 30 ton bridge section like that.

From the report, it sounds as if they were moving fairly quickly, but when carrying something big and strong enough to cause that sort of accident, I would expect them to be moving fairly slowly.

Still, when all is said and done, a person died as a result, and that is not acceptable.

Thanks for that. I had no idea that the sections were not bolted down or held in place in any other way other than the objects weight.

[animatic]

As police escort for the extra large portage job it was their responsibility

to make sure the route and the cargo fit together.

That is the point of the exercise, take them on the route that works.

Clearly the police in the car did NOT DO THEIR JOB,

and when they realised they had cause this calamity,

because of their negligence, they split.

RIP the poor guy just going about his business in his truck.

Not to be augmentative but I bet it's the trucking company's responsibility to ensure they can clear objects along the route like walkover bridges; the police are only there to help clear the way of traffic and assist in any accidents/issues that might arise during the trip. Hopefully the police did ask how high was the load so he could provide an extra set of eyes for bridge clearance (if the bridges height was clearly marked), but he would no doubt be relying totaling on what the trucker told him for load height versus the police doing an actual measurement.

The local police should know their own areas, and have appropriate judgement.

[rametindallas]

The police in this case would have had no role or responsibility for checking the suitability of the route for an oversized load. They were there, presumably, to clear regular traffic for the oversized trucks.

But once the accident occurred and the pickup truck was crushed, the police fleeing the scene and failing to render assistance is inexcuseable. The police shouldn't be hung out to dry for the accident, but they should be for what happened thereafter.

I'll bet the policeman's excuse, when they catch up to him, will be, "I was only there to clear traffic and when I saw that they wouldn't be going forward, my job was done so I went home"

[Soutpeel]

Is there any rebar in that bridge? How fast was the truck going to pull down that bridge? Should a bridge fall down that easily?

Cue the resident TV structural engineering experts...

I am more curious to know what this "oil rigging" equipment was on the trailer...

I'm no expert. I am really curious about how well built the foot bridges are.

That is why I am asking questions, not making declarative statements.

I wasnt having a dig at you... as you will see on TV...we have all kinds of "experts" who pop up....

[PoodMaiDai]

The "police" ran away.

[rametindallas]

Is there any rebar in that bridge? How fast was the truck going to pull down that bridge? Should a bridge fall down that easily?

The bridge is still pretty much intact; just not sitting where it is supposed to be. These bridges are overbuilt for their purpose but none of them are built to withstand a hit from the side from a heavily laden truck travelling at speed. Like all non-suspension bridges, gravity is employed to keep the bridge in place. I can't imaging how massive/strong the pedestrian bridges would have to be built to withstand being struck by a big load at speed. It's just not practical/affordable to build for every possible contingency.

[rametindallas]

Although this death may be seen to be an accident, and therefore reasonably 'sad', is it not also the case (for which there will never be evidence) that the driver of the pickup truck may have been following too close to the vehicle which caused the walkway to fall?

'Keeping your distance' seems something which Thai drivers never EVER think about.

Is there any evidence that the pick up was even on the same side of the road as the truck?

From the photo, the pickup truck was clearly following the large trucks because the bridge section was knocked down in the direction to travel of the large truck and the pickup truck is behind the bridge, mostly. Maybe they were going too slow and he was trying to pass. There are many possible reasons the pickup truck driver was not responsible for his own death.

[Scott]

Is there any rebar in that bridge? How fast was the truck going to pull down that bridge? Should a bridge fall down that easily?

The bridge is still pretty much intact; just not sitting where it is supposed to be. These bridges are overbuilt for their purpose but none of them are built to withstand a hit from the side from a heavily laden truck travelling at speed. Like all non-suspension bridges, gravity is employed to keep the bridge in place. I can't imaging how massive/strong the pedestrian bridges would have to be built to withstand being struck by a big load at speed. It's just not practical/affordable to build for every possible contingency.

The bridges probably can't be built for every possible contingency, but some care should be taken to prevent oversized vehicles from using the road. That's why I was wondering how the oil rigging got there and what was it doing in the area.

I once saw a pickup truck with plastic water bottles so high that when it entered a moo bahn, it took the electric wires down--and sent bottles everywhere. But the bottles were ungodly high.

[Morakot]

How very, very sad.

I can sometimes understand a civilian fleeing, because people can be pretty brutal to those they believe caused the accident, but the police are armed and they were not even directly involved in the accident.

I guess they were hired, like one forum member had done before getting an escort. What was supposed to be a nice and easy extra earner, must have seemed to them at the point of the crash, as endless OT and an administrative nightmare... I'm speculating, but they probably thought why bother, after all it was just a contractual agreement in their "spare time".

Very sad indeed!

I do wonder what public prosecutors in Thailand have to say about this. Common law for example does not recognise that there is a general duty to rescue, but for emergency workers this is different; there it is assumed that police officers have a general duty to rescue the public within the scope of their employment.

Edited May 11, 2013 by Morakot

[merck]

Is there any rebar in that bridge? How fast was the truck going to pull down that bridge? Should a bridge fall down that easily?

Cue the resident TV structural engineering experts...

I am more curious to know what this "oil rigging" equipment was on the trailer...

Like you're not claiming to be some resident Thaivisa road haulage and traffic accident expert by already having cleared the police escort and apportioned blame 100% to the transport company in your earlier post.

PS the Thai Daily News is today reporting the Director General of the Dept of Highways in Thailand as saying that the transport company had broken the law by carrying a load over 4.3 m high without prior permission and authorization from Dept of Transport.

Presumably the escorting police should have checked beforehand if permission had been granted, so bear some responsibility for not stopping the convey. May explain why they did a runner too.

Edited May 11, 2013 by merck

[dapoo999]

However, the police cruiser, assigned to the Traffic Police Division, has disappeared

Pathetic!

[watcharacters]

Couple of questions.

Was "speed" a determined factor in this incident and how is it that the bridge didn't fall on the oil rig carrying truck?

[Soutpeel]

Like you're not claiming to be some resident Thaivisa road haulage and traffic accident expert by already having cleared the police escort and apportioned blame 100% to the transport company in your earlier post.

Having been involved in the engineering teams that have moved heavy things over the last 25 years of my engineering career in various countries in the world...such a nuclear reactors, oil and gas equipment, power plant equipment etc by land and sea...

I am conversant in the legal requirements/liabilities and insurances involved in moving such equipment....so from that perspective I can legitimately claim to have an "expert" level knowledge of such matters relating to the point I commented on...and as stated the police are not liable for this incident...the transport company are...onus is on them to ensure the route used is suitable...

[slapout]

Soutpeel, speaks with knowledge on this topic. This incident just goes to show how PPP can result in a so called 'train wreck', property damage and the death of a innocent and it all falls on the transport company.

For the police escort to leave the scene, for whatever reason, could bring up a lot of other questions, but planning for the transport of equipment on a given route will probably not be one of them.

[Credo]

I wonder if the police escort knew that the transport company was in violation of the regulations? That would explain them high-tailing it out of there.