Construction workers used saws to remove the broken pipe alongside Bethesda's River Road in December. The 66-inch-diameter pipe had been placed directly against jagged rock instead of in the required bed of gravel. (Image By Sarah L. Voisin -- The Washington Post)
ASCE alerted me to this story in their latest news brief. It was a reminder as to why we do the things we do as engineers as well as the problems that we face with aging infrastructure. This 66-inch water pipe exploded under pressure. It is thought that installation next to jagged rock put undue stress on the pipe much as one would experience by having a knee pressed into one’s back. The pipe should have been over-excavated and placed on a bed of gravel. The wonder is that it took 44 years for this mishap to occur. I expect more such ticking time-bombs will come to our attention as they cannot escape the clock and our infrastructure isn’t getting any younger.
Tags: civil engineering, failure, infrastructure, Washington Post
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