GA-Fire destroys I-85 overpass, shutting down major interstate for an extended time

[Anti Federalist]

Ugh, as if traffic wasn't bad enough around there.


Bridge Collapses in Atlanta Freeway Fire During Rush Hour

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/...h-hour-n740871

A massive fire caused a bridge to collapse Thursday night on Interstate 85 in Atlanta, one of the busiest stretches of roadway in America, backing up rush hour traffic for several miles.

The huge fire was reported at 6:21 p.m. ET underneath the bridge on the northbound side — near where the interstate merges with another major artery, State Highway 400 — forcing authorities to close the interstate and turn drivers around during the evening rush.

Then, at about 7 p.m., the bridge collapsed in a flaming heap that spewed thick, black smoke high into the air, where it was visible for miles around Atlanta.

Authorities managed to turn back traffic before the bridge collapsed, and Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal said no injuries were reported. But thousands of motorists were locked in place on the interstate as state troopers worked on a way to get vehicles off the roadway.

The fire itself was declared under control about 8 p.m., but the collapsed bridge was the principal problem. All lanes of I-85 in the area are expected to be blocked indefinitely, the state Transportation Department said.

[axiomata]

Fuel fire can't melt concrete.

[phill4paul]

I-85 shut down is gonna suck.

[phill4paul]

Fuel fire can't melt concrete.

Not in 45 minutes.

[DGambler]

Not in 45 minutes.

What can in 45 minutes?

[pcosmar]

Fuel fire can't melt concrete.

Something did.. well collapsed it anyway.

Burned out some homeless folk and it got out of hand.

[Suzanimal]

The traffic in that area is bad on a good day, It's gonna be a mess until they get that dealt with.

[oyarde]

What can in 45 minutes?

I dunno , will white phosphorous ?

[Zippyjuan]

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/...h-hour-n740871

At a news conference at 11 p.m. ET — almost five hours after the fire started — transportation crews still couldn't gain access to the scene because of the heat still being generated by the flames, McMurry said.

Atlanta Fire Chief Kelvin Cochran disclosed Thursday night that other parts of I-85 had been "compromised" — including the important interchange over Piedmont Road, which leads to the state Capitol.

"We had heavy fire. We had heavy smoke. We couldn't see through that smoke just like everybody else," he said.

The cause of the fire remained undetermined Thursday night, but Deal said in a televised statement that authorities were focusing on the possibility that polyvinyl chloride (PVC) piping commonly used in construction may have ignited for some reason. WXIA reported that large amounts of PVC pipe were stored under the bridge.

State and local officials said more than 225,000 vehicles traveled trough the affected area on an average weekday, and they pleaded with Atlantans to do whatever they could to stay away for as long as it takes.

Atlantans already suffered through the fourth-worst traffic in America and the ninth worst in the world, Inrix, a global transportation research firm, reported last year. But the impact of the collapse is likely to be felt for some time across the Southeast.

I-85 is one of the busiest freeways in the eastern half of the country, carrying vehicles almost 700 miles from southern Alabama through Virginia. It is an important commercial throughway for trucks making deliveries to businesses and warehouses not only in Atlanta but also in other major commercial centers like Montgomery, Alabama, and Charlotte, North Carolina.

[Suzanimal]

What can in 45 minutes?

PVC pipes?

The cause of the fire remained undetermined Thursday night, but Deal said in a televised statement that authorities were focusing on the possibility that polyvinyl chloride (PVC) piping commonly used in construction may have ignited for some reason. WXIA reported that large amounts of PVC pipe were stored under the bridge.

[Zippyjuan]

PVC pipes?

Hmm. http://www.pvc.org/en/p/fire-retardant-properties

PVC is an inherently fire resistant plastic, the only exception among the general-purpose plastics, since it contains more than 50% of chlorine.

When PVC products are burned, hydrogen chloride gas resulting from thermal cracking slows down the continuous combustion reaction and prevents burning progress by warding off the PVC product surface from oxygen in the air. The gas is also detectable by its – highly unpleasant - odour at concentrations well below those that could be harmful to health. This feature allows early detection of a fire. Gaseous hydrochloric acid is, for example, much less hazardousthan carbon monoxide, which is narcotic and has no smell and can rapidly lead to paralysis and death.

Other advantages of PVC are that it releases less combustion heat than other plastics - hence contributes less to maintaining and spreading fire – and produces no or very few flaming droplets or debris. Burning PVC yields an expanded carbonaceuous structure usually called ‘intumescence’. This structure forms a thermal barrier protecting underlying parts. In some cases, such as pipes, PVC can even prevent fire spreading by blocking the orifices through walls or floors.

[phill4paul]

Jet fuel. I blame jet fuel. Don't know how it got there but it melt cement and metal.

[TheTexan]

OMG WAS IT A TERRORIST ??

[phill4paul]

This is some major $#@!. If what I think happened actually happened. Even if what I think happened didn't then it's a precursor to what will be done.

[TheTexan]

OMG WAS IT A TERRORIST ??

Now they are going after our ROADS???

[TheTexan]

This is some major $#@!. If what I think happened actually happened. Even if what I think happened didn't then it's a precursor to what will be done.

You really think they would do that? You really they can do that?

[phill4paul]

OMG WAS IT A TERRORIST ??

You'll only pay 25% more for toilet paper if it were. And honestly shipping by airships and drones make much more sense.

[Suzanimal]

This is some major $#@!. If what I think happened actually happened. Even if what I think happened didn't then it's a precursor to what will be done.

So you don't think it was the PVC pipes, either? I'm suspicious.

[angelatc]

So you don't think it was the PVC pipes, either? I'm suspicious.

I cannot find the picture again but someone tweeted a pic of the fire when it was just starting. They had a bunch of construction stuff stored under the bridge. IIRC it looked like rolls and rolls and rolls of the perforated pvc black flex pipe used for drainage.

[phill4paul]

So you don't think it was the PVC pipes, either? I'm suspicious.

$#@! no I don't. And even if it were..well...what a great, enexpensive way to destroy the infrastructure.

No. I don't believe that if I loaded a tractor trailer with PVC pipe and parked it under a bridge and set it on fire it would cause that kind of collapse.

If it could.....well.

[axiomata]

Bring in the Portland Pothole Anarchists.

[Anti Federalist]

Chinese pvc?

[CPUd]

It's happening?

[tod evans]

Moar bridge police!

[Anti Federalist]

Yeah, something stinks here...

As already noted, PVC does not burn vigorously and tends to self extinguish.



Now, if it was a bunch of this drainage stuff:



That's NOT PVC, that's HDPE plastic, which does burn merry hell once going.

[Jan2017]

PVC pipe - capped . . . filled with something, like jet fuel.

[JK/SEA]

OMG WAS IT A TERRORIST ??

just a test.

[pcosmar]

I cannot find the picture again but someone tweeted a pic of the fire when it was just starting. They had a bunch of construction stuff stored under the bridge. IIRC it looked like rolls and rolls and rolls of the perforated pvc black flex pipe used for drainage.

Looked like a lot of Drums.. and a small fire..
There were a LOT of Police, and Firefighters at the beginning.. clearing out homeless camps reportedly.


I suspect aggressive tactics of removal resulted in the conflagration.

think Firemen of Fahrenheit 451.

[Zippyjuan]

http://www.wrdw.com/content/news/Mas...417723893.html

3 arrested in connection with overpass collapse

Officials say three people have been arrested in connection with a massive fire under Interstate 85 in Atlanta that caused a portion of the bridge to collapse.

Deputy Insurance Commissioner Jay Florence confirms the suspects were arrested Friday. He identified them as Basil Eleby, Sophia Bruner and Barry Thomas. Eleby faces a charge of criminal damage to property, while Bruner and Thomas each was charged with criminal trespass.

Florence did not have ages or hometowns of the three, all of whom were being held at the Fulton County Jail.

Florence did not say how they were developed as suspects but noted they were interviewed throughout the day and law enforcement subsequently made the arrests.

He would not discuss how the fire was started or why, saying those details would be released as the investigation progresses.

Capt. Mark Perry of the Georgia State Patrol told the newspaper the agency doesn't know what started the fire beneath the bridge but terrorism is not suspected.

Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal told reporters that some PVC plastic materials in a vehicle may have caught fire.

Perhaps they lit the vehicle on fire?

Capt. Mark Perry of the Georgia State Patrol told the newspaper the agency doesn't know what started the fire beneath the bridge but terrorism is not suspected.

Basil Eleby sounds like a character from Downton Abbey.

Authorities allege that Eleby is the suspect who started the blaze, reported AJC.com, which quoted Jay Florence, deputy commissioner of the state Department of Insurance, as saying: “We believe they were together when the fire was set and Eleby is the one who set the fire.”

According to WSB-TV, “Witnesses say troopers were telling cars to turn around on the bridge because they were concerned about its integrity. Minutes later, the bridge collapsed.”

News11 confirmed the arrests and reported, “Officials still don’t know what materials fueled the destructive fire, but investigators indicate that the three people…are connected to the fire.”

Authorities were saying little about the three under arrest, reported AJC, as they were being interrogated. However, they did say that they believe the suspects used “available materials” at the site and “may have been homeless,” the newspaper reported.

He is said to have had prior arrests.

[Suzanimal]

Hobo fire? It wasn't even cold out.