Nakhon Pathom – The Secretary-General of the Council of Engineers (COE) has reached his conclusions on the reasons that a boat colliding with a bridge in Nakhon Pathom resulted in the complete destruction of the bridge, and has issued four recommendations for improving safety.
COE Secretary-General Amorn Pimanmas, oversaw preparation of a report by council members who earlier studied the incident in which a cargo ship rammed into a Ta Chin River bridge in Nakhon Pathom, causing it to disintegrate. They pointed out the ship, weighing as much as 900 tons with its cargo, collided with the base of the bridge’s middle section, pushing it out and causing its support beams to be dislodged. As the middle of the bridge gave way it pulled the bridge’s land support structure down with it.
The council’s inspectors pointed out perceived design flaws with the bridge’s load-bearing base.
The councilors have issued four guidelines for bridge design to prevent the structures from collapsing in boat collisions. They have suggested that new bridges be equipped with energy dissipation features, have support bases near the river banks and feature protective structures around their bases. They decreed that designs always be undertaken by engineers licensed by the COE.
