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Originally Posted by Dartguard
I keep an eye on a blog called Shipfax. Mac has watched over the ins and outs in Halifax Harbour for decades. He wrote a very comprehensive note on our situation yesterday. It seems the Halifax explosion has instilled a safety culture here in Nova Scotia.
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Thanks for that. A very interesting read.
Sounds like Halifax has robust safety measures in place to help prevent a similar disaster from happening, though still possible, as he sums up:
Quote:
So the simple answer to the question "Could it happen here?" is a conditional yes. There are many safeguards in place, likely to be strengthened now, so the likelihood of it happening here is slight and probably even less so as time goes on due to a heightened awareness of the dangers.
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https://shipfax.blogspot.com/
A couple of thoughts I had:
1) I was aware of the rock islands, but wonder whether they are large enough in diameter to prevent contact from the bow or stern of a large ship, given the overhang on a number of them, plus the possibility of displacement of rocks combined with deformation of the ship's hull as momentum pushes it towards the bridge support columns.
2) Bridge construction: I think most people were surprised at how quickly the Key bridge in Baltimore collapsed into the harbour. I know I was, but with each agonizing sequence played over and over again on the news channels (how many times can we watch those poor construction workers die?), it became clear that the integrity of the truss construction of the bridge was completely dependent upon both support points being intact. I can't say for sure, but I imagine the bridge deck on Halifax's suspension bridges would be more difficult to bring down completely due to their method of support and the nature of suspension bridge configuration.
Anyhow, thanks to all for posting your thoughts on the situation. I was curious as how others in the area were processing this.