NTSB Dissent Reveals Multiple Possible Causes Of 35W Bridge Collapse

Politics, just like rust, never sleeps. Both may be factors in the collapse of the 35W bridge. But there's a chance you'll never get the full story on either of those factors, thanks to the National Transportation Safety Board's decision not to hold an interim public hearing on the disaster that took 13 lives. The NTSB recently voted 3-2 to not hold the public hearing, angering Minnesota Congressman Jim Oberstar — who has frequently been critical of the NTSB's handling of the investigation.

Inside Minnesota Politics and The UpTake have obtained the written dissenting opinions from NTSB Commissioners Deborah Hersman and Katheryn O'Leary Higgins. The dissent reveals not only displeasure with the other commissioners' decision not to hold a public hearing on one of the worst bridge collapse disasters in U.S. history, but the document also gives us a glimpse into likely factors of the collapse.

The dissent mentions the design flaw that NTSB Chairman Mark Rosenker touted as the "critical factor" at a January press conference, and then quietly backed away from after Congressman Oberstar took him to task. But it also details other factors that should be aired in the public hearing. The two dissenting commissioners wrote:

"The public hearing can then focus on other relevant issues, such as the design approval process at the time the bridge was built and its evolution into the process that exists today; national bridge collapse or failure history; inspection criteria and procedures; corrosion standards; records retention requirements; national, state and local oversight; and other areas that could help us learn how to prevent a similar collapse."

There's that word "corrosion" again. Rust is an unavoidable reality for bridges unless you paint and maintain them regularly. The frequency of that maintenance (not just inspection) is where politics comes in. Democrats in Minnesota have been pointing fingers at Republican Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty's administration, which has been strangling the budget so the dollars to do maintenance properly have not been there.

More political factors: NTSB Chairman Rosenker has spent a career in Republican politics starting with CREEP, the Nixon Re-Election group, where he was deputy director for radio and TV. He has worked in nearly every Republican campaign from the 1970s to the present. If funding for bridge maintenance turns out to be a factor in the collapse, Republican Governor Pawlenty could end up taking the political fall for it.

According to the dissent, NTSB staff are concerned that politics will make it difficult to hold a public hearing. The dissenting commissioners argue that the political charged environment make a public hearing necessary to maintain the public's trust in the process:

"The downside of not holding a hearing is significant not only for this accident and for the transportation community, but also for the Board. We believe we would be abandoning our important duty to educate and reassure the traveling public of an independent, transparent, credible investigation after a tragic accident of national scope. And, after our decision not to hold a public hearing on the Comair flight 5191 accident in Lexington, Kentucky - for which the Board was roundly criticized - we believe our reputation for independence and transparency would suffer further.

"This is one of the rare accident investigations the Board has undertaken that has involved the total collapse of a major interstate highway bridge. Given the number of interstate bridges that exist in this country, the age of those bridges, and the use of those bridges, there is a significant need to explore whether this accident is likely to remain rare in the future."

Congressman Oberstar will ask the NTSB to reconsider its decision not to hold the public hearing:

“I am disappointed in Chairman Rosenker’s decision to not hold public hearings as part of the investigation of the I-35w bridge collapse, I believe the board is making a mistake. There has not been a bridge collapse in the United States in decades and it deserves a hearing. For NTSB it is both a teaching and learning opportunity. The board can teach the public how it investigates a tragedy of this magnitude and the discussion of the data that was gathered may yield new information that will help explain how this tragedy occurred. No investigation has ever suffered from a thorough discussion of the evidence.”

NTSB Chair Backs Off Assertion That Design Flaw Was "Critical Factor" in 35W Bridge Collapse

Whoops. That rust on bridge and lack of maintenance might have had something to do with the 35W bridge collapse after all. NTSB Chair Mark Rosenker is backing off from his earlier statement that a design flaw in the gusset plates was the "critical factor" in the collapse of the bridge. As reported here earlier, Minnesota Congressman Jim Oberstar took him to task for that statement.

Rosenker writes back to Oberstar in an apologetic tone, saying

"Please be assured that it was not my intent to get ahead of the ongoing NTSB investigation or to hypothesize about the root and contributing causes of the bridge collapse.

"It was not my intent to characterize this single conclusion as the possible probable cause determination of the Board."

What he MEANT to say was corrosion was not found on the gusset plates where the collapse likely started. So while the gusset plate design flaw may not have stopped the bridge from collapsing, it may not be in Rosenker's words "the straw or straws that broke the camels back."

You can read a pdf of Rosenker's letter here.

Oberstar Blasts NTSB Chair For 35W Bridge Comments

The National Transportation Safety Board usually follows a strict policy of not announcing the cause of an accident until the investigation is completed. Yet last week even though the NTSB reported it had not determined the probable cause of the 35W bridge collapse, NTSB Chairman Mark Rosenker said a design flaw in the bridge's gusset plates "tells us why the bridge collapsed."

Minnesota Congressman Jim Oberstar is taking Rosenker to task for his remarks, calling them "unfortunate" and suggesting that they could compromise the NTSB's investigation.

In a letter sent to Rosenker today, Oberstar writes:

"I consider it highly inappropriate for you to have stated as you did in the press conference, that the poor design of the plates 'tells us why the bridge collapsed.' Although you admitted you do not have complete information on corrosion, you nonetheless insisted that poor design was the 'critical factor.'
"Such announcements undermine the process and create the potential for committing the board to conclusions that will be difficult to change if the subsequent investigation suggests other conclusions.
"I strongly urge you to adhere to the Board's established process of not announcing the cause of an accident until the investigation is completed."

In the letter Oberstar indicated that holding the press conference was the right thing to do since other bridges may have the same design flaw. A pdf of the letter is here

Drazkowski: There is enough money for transportation projects

Tomorrow voters in 28B will have a pretty clear choice on how to fix the state's crumbling transportation infrastructure. One candidate favors more funding, the other thinks current funding is enough. Here's the side by side comparison of the Republican Steve Drazkowski and DFLer Linda Pfeilsticker's responses to the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce's questionnaire.

In order to strengthen Minnesota's economy, strategic investment in transportation infrastructure is necessary. How do you propose to fund Minnesota's transportation infrastructure to assure the safest, most cost effective transportation system that will meet the economic and quality-of-life needs of our state?
Steve Drazkowski: There is enough money for transportation projects in Minnesota, we just need be more efficient and prioritize our spending on transportation projects.,	Linda Pfeilsticker: Transportation is vital to the economic stablity of our region and state. We have to look at all forms of funding to determine what can be most effective and fair to improve and maintain our transportation system.

It appears Drazkowski is ignoring the reality even his fellow Republican Governor Tim Pawlenty has now recognized. Minnesota simply does not have enough money to keep its bridges in shape and needs to raise taxes.

A hat tip to Ollie at Bluestem Prairie for pointing out the MN Chamber of Commerce questionnaire.

Video: Congressman Oberstar on Bridge Collapse

Click To Play

Congressman Jim Oberstar talks about how he has introduced a bill to fund rebuilding the I-35W bridge that collapsed. Currently the cap on emergency funding is $100 Million. Oberstar's bill would increase that to $350 Million. Congress made a similar exception earlier this year when a bridge in California was destroyed in a tanker fire. Video provided by Congressman Jim Oberstar's office.

Governor Pawlenty Says Special Session Possible On Transportation And Infrastructure

Governor Tim Pawlenty today said he is is open to all options to solve Minnesota's transportation and infrastructure problems including a special session of the legislature. Previously the Governor had been very cool to the idea of calling lawmakers back into session. He vetoed the transportation bill the legislature passed because it included a 5 cent a gallon gas tax.

Pawlenty indicated that even if he had signed the 2007 transportation bill or the 2006 transportation bill which he also vetoed the I-35W bridge would not have been replaced.

451 Minnesota Bridges Functionally Obsolete

Conrad deFiebre, who covered transportation for many years, has the figures on the safety status of Minnesota bridges.

The Interstate Hwy. 35W bridge that tragically collapsed into the Mississippi River Wednesday evening was one of 1,135 road spans in Minnesota rated as “structurally deficient” by the federal government.

That’s 8.7 percent of the state’s 13,008 bridges, 20 feet or longer, that are subject to annual inspections. Another 451 spans are considered “functionally obsolete.” Included in the total are 65 bridges that are more than a century old.

Full story from Minnesota 2020 here

Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty says there are three bridges in Minnesota that of the same design as the I-35W bridge that collapsed (click to see maps)
Highway 23 in St. Cloud
Highway 123 in Sandstone
Highway 243 in Osceola

Governor Pawlenty says those bridges will be inspected immediately. He says all bridges in Minnesota that fall into the "structurally deficient" category will be inspected as soon as possible.

451 Minnesota Bridges Functionally Obsolete

Conrad deFiebre, who covered transportation for many years, has the figures on the safety status of Minnesota bridges.

The Interstate Hwy. 35W bridge that tragically collapsed into the Mississippi River Wednesday evening was one of 1,135 road spans in Minnesota rated as “structurally deficient” by the federal government.

That’s 8.7 percent of the state’s 13,008 bridges, 20 feet or longer, that are subject to annual inspections. Another 451 spans are considered “functionally obsolete.” Included in the total are 65 bridges that are more than a century old.

Full story from Minnesota 2020 here

Collapsed Bridge Repairs Were Delayed From 2006 to 2007

Crews were still looking for the injured from the collapse of bridge 9340 when the finger pointing of who might be to blame began. Former Minnesota Department of Transportation Commissioner Elwyn Tinklenberg, a Democrat, was on WCCO-AM saying that budget cuts had curtailed the DOT's ability to do complete bridge inspections. A few hours later Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, a Republican who had vetoed the transportation bill two years in a row, was telling the media that the bridge had checked out just fine when inspected in 2005 and 2006.

A MN DOT document from March 2006 indicated that the bridge was scheduled for repairs in 2006, but it was removed from the schedule because it would be more efficient to do the work in 2007. One of the questions that needs to be answered is if budget constraints were the cause of delaying the repairs.

If the lack of funding for bridge repairs and inspections had anything to do with the collapse of the 35W bridge and the loss of life it caused, it has the potential to be a political landmine for Governor Pawlenty and those legislators who voted to support his transportation bill veto.

The cause of the collapse and the answer to the question "could this have been avoided" make take some time to determine. The National Transportation Safety Board has been called in. There is likely to be investigations on the state level as well.

Inside Minnesota Politics has obtained the 89-page report of bridge 9340's inspection in 2001. In it, there are perhaps some hints of what may have brought the bridge down.

The report recommended inspecting certain parts of the bridge every two years as was the custom. But it specified the parts that had "high stress ranges" should be inspected every six months.

What's not known tonight is if those inspections were carried out as planned, or if budget cuts prevented them.

The 2001 inspection also noted that "The bridge's deck truss has not experienced any fatigue cracking, but it has many poor fatigue details on the main truss and the floor truss system. The research helped determine that the fatigue cracking of the deck truss is not likely, which means the bridge should not have any problems with fatigue cracking in the foreseeable future."