Construction in general really. It seems to be upwards of 95% of these construction disasters are caused entirely by someone going cheaper somewhere along the line.
Cheaper seems to be synonymous with efficiency these days. And buzzwords like "efficiency" are a keystone of misdirection. Net zero, low emissions... carbon neutral? Simple terms used to blame someone else for a mess we've all caused. Try to give up air conditioning and modern utilities. Even simple, "trivial" accommodations are so standard that they can't be ignored. Ask yourself: How long could I survive without a refrigerator, lights, car, indoor plumbing... phone? Things aren't cheap, and nothing is ever truly free. Sorry if you haven't noticed that we can't all get handouts. Greed won't fuel this boat, but it could easily sink it. My apologies to those who were lost in this incident. There's a good chance they never knew they had sealed their fate. After all, why would anyone de-rate the strength of an aging bridge? Or tell anyone about it? That's just an expensive way to lose your job!
The fact that the sightings stopped after the bridge collapsed has the obvious explanation that nobody was driving through the area because the bridge was out. But still...
Sorry for your dog John, it had a good life at 12 years old, glad you were able to save it from the race rings. And as always, very good video, good production and simple-yet-complete explanations.
I was wondering why he sounded so down in his narration for this video. Always a sad thing to lose a good buddy like that. Yet that is life.... whatever is given, is eventually taken away. :(
@@bearb1asting Yeah I could tell something was wrong, I’ve watched all of his videos and this one just seemed different. Losing your loyal companion is a type of grief unlike anything else. Also, John if you’re reading this I want to express my condolences, keep up your amazing work, you and your content are truly brilliant sir.
Would you ever consider making a video on how you research and make an episode. I am a uni student and you always present information in such a clear, annotated and well layed out order. It's something to aspire to. Especially your diagrams they help visualise the story a lot for me. Many thanks Toby :)
@@PlainlyDifficult that sounds like a really good idea :) I'd join just for that. Although life is just hard to finance as a student but this choice would definitely benefit my future employment and current education :). Thanks again for what you do you're a good roll modle for many of us :)
@@antlerman7644 In the meantime, might I suggest OverlySarcasticProductions, who have actually DONE a video about researching and producing their videos... You might just get a kick out of Red and Blue and some of their other antics along the way... depending on how much you like folklore, myth, and antiquity.. ;o)
So sorry about your pup, and thank you for adopting a furry friend. My picture is of Anna, a lump of old, fuzzy love who came to me from a shelter (after she'd been shuttled from shelter to shelter for years because no one wants a cat; everyone wants a kitten). I hope you know that you gave your pup a wonderful life the day you opened your home and heart to a friend in need.
I'd agree with the ranking. This is a collapse that we still study in engineering classes as a perfect example of why adding redundancy and eliminating/minimizing single points of failure are so important. Especially in civil engineering where large projects, such as bridges, dams, and levees, can pose a huge public risk if they fail catastrophically. After all, if the arm on your excavator snaps off, it might injure or even kill someone, but if a large bridge or dam collapses it can hurt or kill thousands.
I’m also in engineering! This channel has helped me gain a very healthy respect for safety regulations, double+ checking, and not being cheap or shortsighted when it comes to engineering designs... or protocols (especially nuclear waste protocols) 👀
I live near Point Pleasant, WV, and have been there MANY times. The Silver Bridge has a plaque where it once stood, and it's collapse is documented in detail at the nearby Mothman Museum. It's interesting how that collapse really shaped the future of the town..Pt. Pleasant really doesn't seem to have ever gotten past the tragedy. It's a strange town with a weird vibe. I recommend a visit, and if you can get there for the Mothman Festival...it's unique on planet Earth.
I had wondered why Pt Pleasant was on the signage, since it didn't seem like much of a town from the highway (I'm not a native Ohioan or West Virginian, and was just passing through)
the fact that this is talked about in the mothman museum makes me think that the mothman theory was taken more seriously than it should, and that's hilarious
@@p4ngolin It's a tourist thing and a bit of local pride for some residents. I live near Charleston, WV and went there a few years ago. They've got the Mothman museum and Mothman tours. There's a big silver statue of him in town that you can go get a picture with. They also have a museum dedicated to the bridge with no Mothman, men in black, or Native American curses involved. It's just kind of part of the local lore and natives and tourists just enjoy the strangeness. Small town America at it's best, a little weird and a lot proud.
So sorry for your loss John. I too have a canine friend who just pushed through her 15th year, and she prefers sleeping more and more these days. Very good video as always, though I disagree on the 7 disaster scale rating, comparing this to bigger infrastructure failures, though it did indeed create more discussion on bridge maintenance and the need for redundancy in designs
Personally, I think the wild conspiracy theories brought about by this disaster warrant the rating. There are people to this day that believe in and search for Monthman (similar to how others treat Bigfoot) because of this bridge collapse. There was even a popular movie about it with Richard Gere (The Mothman Prophecies, 2002). Such an unexpected consequence of a enduring urban legend is fascinating to say the least.
Hi John. I’m sad to hear that your Greyhound has passed. I’ve been privileged enough to spend time with several rescued pointy 40mph couch potatoes during my lifetime and their gentle affection, loyalty, sense of humour and intelligence always made me wonder why they bothered with me at all 🙂 Then the zoomies kick-in and it’s quite clear that we share a type of eccentric madness punctuated by long lazy spells 😆 I’m gutted for your loss but I’m sure that there are a raft of great memories to help ease the pain.
I was super excited when the Sliver Bridge collapse won the vote to be your next video and you didnt disappoint. As someone that from WV, my grandmother would talk about The Sliver Bridge collapse and the Buffalo Creek Dam disaster. Its great to see someone bring these tragedies to light with knowledge and respect because both are usually overlooked. Great video, much respect.
I grew up just outside of Buffalo Creek, and it really is nice to see someone touch on these local disasters that only we seem to talk about - and with such respect too. For years it felt like the only people who knew anything about Dam #3 was folks in Man, WV, which is these days a town of barely over a thousand, maybe 3-4 if you count the surrounding area… which feels awful and isolating when you start encountering people elsewhere - even the next town over - who just don’t even know. Kudos to John for taking the approach he does with these things.
Anytime I hear "but the engineering design wasn't followed" I get a bad feeling in my gut. Then I saw the design of the vertical beams that would collapse if anything fails on the support cables.. made me think, why they wouldn't add supportive triangular support beams at the base of the vertical beams to keep it from a full collapse. Especially since this bridge was built to withstand much lower standards than was being forced on it in the days of the failure.. I really wish we could do better at, at least innovation type upgrades to our structures. Like not needing to fully tear down and rebuild but just adding on upgrades here and there to further increase the effectiveness of the structure, especially over time and weathering effects. I know it costs money but you know what costs a ton more money? Having to fully rebuild after a catastrophic failure event... So they never are saving money in reality, they're just prolonging when they HAVE to spend money, and how much they spend and the effects it has on innocent citizens..
The engineering wasn’t completely terrible. There are very similar bridges from the same era still standing over the Ohio River. You can’t just add and add and add to a bridge, the heavier the bridge itself, the more load you place on the bridge independent of the dynamic load.
yes and no, the idea of doing a chain bar isn't a terrible idea for this type of bridge, if done well it actually provides more support for it's weight than a traditional cable span. However, if working in machining and manufacturing (which comes with a lot of fabrication) has taught me anything. If there is no redundancy, you have failed. there should never be a condition in any design you work on where a single point of failure takes it down. This was a case of "we want to save a bit too much money" Honestly though the big one is, if you're going to increase the load capacity of something like a bridge you really have to consider the design, what it was originally made to carry, and what happens when overloaded. This case it was corrosion at a defect. However many bridges have failed due to metal fatigue from being overloaded and unloaded too many times. Every bridge that's metal will eventually suffer fatigue issues, the defect in this bridge was sped up by the overloading, however it would have failed eventually anyway. The only way that this could have been saved, would have been having a redundant link system, so individual bars could be removed, so they could be inspected, most bridges like this are double rated, they have twice the support it needs to stand so 4 links or more, so the two on either the inside or outside chain can be removed, and replaced, or inspected without risking the structure.
I've seen it be a good thing occasionally, if they decide to overbuild something to save time. But usually this is my reaction too. There's usually a reason the engineers designed it the way they did and making big changes without having another engineer double check them is a fast way to run into trouble.
I worked on a sewer project once where the contractor who built it had gone from 6 sizes of pipe to 3. So they rounded up all the sizes they eliminated, so an 18" pipe was replaced with 24". The system ended up having a lot more capacity than planned and when we went to prepare for an expansion project we found we could actually skip a large part of what we expected since it still had capacity to spare. But seeing a contractor overbuild something to save money is a lot more rare than seeing corners cut, sadly.
Far more often then not I'd imagine changing the design has a seriously negative tone for whatever comes after it, I thought the same thing. "The actual design called for this, but we did something else" I think that's how the Hyatt got it's collapse as well.
It’s so nice to see how far you’ve come with your videos. Been following you for a long time now but still your narration and animations get better and better from video to video. Keep up the great work. Suggestion: do the Eschede Train Desaster.
Ah, yes! You mentioned the Hi Carpenter Bridge! That bridge was between St Marys, WV and Newport, OH. Local lore has it as a twin to the Silver Bridge, and it was closed and removed after the determination of the cause of the Silver Bridge collapse. The east (WV) approach was left in place as it was the only access to Middle Island (which was a farm at the time). Presumably it was privately owned by the farm. After the removal, river crossing was by ferry for the time it took for the replacement bridge to be built. Yes, I grew up in St Marys, and remember both the ferry and the opening of the replacement bridge 😉
I love the editorial inclusion of Moth Man like it’s a real thing. “Ya, know a Moth Man incident. These things sometimes happen.” (my own quote, not from video) :)
My condolences about your dog. Your videos, although plainly difficult, have been a great resource and learning tool for myself and I'm sure many others. Keep up the fantastic work!
I am surprised that the bridge managed to hold up so long. Being overloaded not just by much three times as heavy vehicles, but also the replacement reinforced concrete driveway instead of the previous wooden/asphalt layer surely added much more weight, resulting in both static and dynamic stresses far exceeding original design. Some bridges were close to collapse, being also overloaded and used way past their expected lifespan, but they did not collapse, as they were closely monitored. One such bridge served almost 60 years instead of the designed 10 and its driveway, originally with wooden pavement blocks being replaced by heavy reinforced concrete panels with an asphalt layer on top. Originally a cheap, temporary, "war bridge", it served well into the 21th century. Without collapsing. There were some local and serious failures on the bridge, but nobody got hurt. The bridge was already closed for car traffic at that time so a potential disaster was avoided. But it showed that the closure was justified.
@@antonberglund117 The Old bridge in Bratislava. After retreating Nazi forces had blown the original bridge, a makeshift "temporary" bridge was built in record time, planned only to last for 10 years. It served almost 60. It was then taken apart and a new Old bridge was built. It still has the name Old bridge, even as it is the second newest over the Danube as of 2023. I keep forgetting the recently opened bridge that carries the D4 motorway.
Excellent video, as per usual. Condolences, it's hard to lose a family member. I can't physically give a full time dog a good home but your advice is solid; retired dogs need a good home. I'm currently owned by seven cats, all feral rescues, four of whom we found in our neighborhood. All are "mutts" of unknown provenance but care and attention have melded them into a well-behaved happy pride. We've rescued and placed three others over the years. Ours are the light of our lives. :)
Rest in peace to your wonderful dog, you've done a wonderful job taking them in and giving all the love you can in their older years- but I'm sorry for your loss. Amazing video as usual, I hope you aren't pushing yourself in tough times.
As someone who grew up in this region, I've heard stories about this bridge since childhood and have collected many newspaper articles about it. It's a tragedy still remembered every year and everyone knew someone affected by it. Thanks for making this well-researched, respectful video. Well done.
"the other theory... Mothman" I nearly snorted my shake up my nose. That would explain why I thought this bridge disaster sounded vaguely familiar. I've watched shows that only depicted this from the cryptid angle. And I agree, I think undetected cracks are far more sinister than a literal harbinger of doom. But people really like a story that anthropomorphizes the danger around them; it's more accessible than the cluster of failures that actually doomed this bridge. 10:25 RIP to a good doggo.
Been watching the channel for a while now and love the content. Sorry to hear about your canine buddy. Right up there with losing a human member of the family in the bad news you can have.
I skipped to the end to see your rating and then went back to watch. Can't fool me! Still don't know if 1 is the most or the least deadly though, so lots of mystery left! Thanks for all the work.
So sorry for your loss John, but I’m glad you gave your dog a loving and safe home. So, I’m from West Virginia, and I remember mom telling me they were going to visit family in Ohio the day the Silver Bridge collapsed. They stopped in Point Pleasant for dinner before moving on (family lived on the other side of Columbus). They crossed the bridge, and later found out that the bridge collapsed about an hour after they crossed.
Awesome upload John, Im so sorry to see the loss of your fuzzy buddy man. I know it's hard to lose a pup but atleast you had 12 good years with them. Not having redundancy in something like this is insane. I mean you wouldn't fly a plane that didn't have several instances of redundancy built in. If not for safety then certainly so you could do a more thorough inspection. Plus going from wood planks and asphalt to concrete grid I am sure the weight increased a great deal. In addition to the increased weight of vehicles, and increased traffic of heavier vehicles. Just like a bridge build for the weight of vehicles and traffic of the 60s would be insufficient for vehicles of today as well as the higher population and thus increased traffic.
Your comment hits all kinds of good points. Thought I'd just add this info. In the case of redundancy in air planes look up the Air Alaska plane that crash off the coast of California due to a failed jackscrew in the rudder. There was no redundancy for a failure in that part. Air Alaska 261.
Another well done video. Much love to a departed puppy and I would imagine a good friend. ❤️ Hard to believe engineers would build non-redundant structures like that; however, cost and time-to-build are always going to be pressures on deployments. (And I wasn't scared when I watched the Mothman Prophecies movie.... you were! 🫣).
I knew I recognized the name of that bridge. Local West Virginian and Mothman fanatic here; some theories state Mothman was not the cause of the collapse, but merely trying to warn people; this later became a joke in several forms of media, including a podcast made by locals where a seer character was literally Mothman, and considered the Silver Bridge to not be his finest moment. As an aside, I really appreciate your coverage of civil disasters in West Virginia. I grew up around Buffalo Creek, and it’s rare to hear anyone talk about what happened there outside of the locals. Your level of research and respect is a welcome change from some of the… less kind things I’ve heard about us hillfolk. Thank you. And my condolences for the loss of your furbaby. It’s never easy. Take care of yourself, John, and rest easy knowing you gave them the best life.
I grew up half an hour from there. The families are still haunted by the loss of so many loved ones. Everyone knew someone on that bridge. I don’t think any of the families have gotten over it- most people in the area talk about the bridge collapse as if it happened only a decade ago. One of my own family members had gotten off work late that day, and was stuck in the traffic waiting to go onto the bridge. Being late saved his life that day, but he was still scarred by what he witnessed as the bridge collapsed. Thank you for covering this
I have thoroughly enjoyed many of your videos. Knowing that you have adopted greyhounds makes me appreciate your work even more. I have adopted 9 greyhounds since 1999.
I’ve been waiting for this one! My grandmother lives about 20 minutes away from this bridge. Has been for about 60 years now. She was in her 20s when this happened, and every generation thereafter in the area made it tradition to explore the woods and old bunker nearby (before it was closed off) in search of the “mothman.” As absolutely tragic as this bridge collapse was, the legend of the mothman is one of the only things keeping this town and nearby areas afloat. It’s genuinely heartwarming to see people travel fairly decent distances to visit the mothman museum and take pictures with the statue outside of it. My grandma was FLOORED when I told her how popular the mothman had gotten, because for decades it was mostly a local legend before exploding in popularity on the internet in the 2000s and early 2010s. About two years ago, my mother, grandma (now in her 80s), and I hopped over the short metal gate to continue the tradition, with it being my first time doing so. She doesn’t get out much now, so it was really nice being able to get her out of the house and go to the museum, then go for a walk in the woods. Even though we had to pick tics off of each other before going back in the house. Definitely a fair warning for anyone who wants to visit those woods, tics are EVERYWHERE. West Virginia is notorious for them. Please, be better than me and actually dress properly for walking around in tall, tic infested grass. I was very lucky to only have one on me, and it didn’t make it to my skin yet - but it was close. It was crawling around my my hair 😖
I'm glad you added the bit about Mothman, not because it's a plausible theory, but because it's tied into the lore of the Silver Bridge collapse. Alleged sightings only started just prior to the collapse and tapered off shortly after. So, although not tied to the collapse in reality, it is an interesting side note.
Alleged sightings *in that area,* if "just prior" extend to a year. Mothman has been seen before and since elsewhere. Many Mothman sightings may be loons -- literally.
Hey John, sorry to hear about your loss. Hope you're doing okay. Just wanted to say that I think it's preferable to have the disaster and legacy scales at the beginning of the video rather than the end. It helps to gauge the video before you go through it and gives a lot of context on the severity of the event.
I would say it all depends on how well and often service is done. Anything can fail if it has been working long enough. Since im used to Germany safety standards i cant hold myself back from looking for the safety sticker on any machinery that could kill me. If the elevator had no service im gonna use the stairs O.o
As a general rule, walking across a street is more dangerous than riding an elevator or driving across a bridge. It of course depends on the street and time of day as much as it depends on the inspection/service interval of an elevator or a bridge. However, there are laws that regulate inspection/service intervals, whereas there are often laws against you just walking across a street wherever and whenever you like. Long story short: Maybe.
I would agree with Jonny Smith and add in that I believe bridges are more dangerous than elevators. It is much easier to shutdown an elevator for inspection or maintenance. Bridges on the other hand are more difficult as shutting down a major bridge will lead to redirecting traffic onto roads that are not always designed for heavy traffic loads. So unless something severely wrong is discovered with a bridge they are more than likely to just let it be, and hope for the best.
Thank you John! Excellent work as always!! My heart breaks for your loss. There are no good words at a time like this. Just know that we are thinking about you!
Sorry for your dog passing away, I'm sure you gave him the best possible life. Quite noble from you to rescue him and promote it in your (again) great video.
Sorry to hear about your beautiful grey hound. We lost our Cooper 5 years ago yesterday. Grey hounds are beyond the best. And thanks for another great and informative video.
sorry to hear about you dog. i've taken care of a few greyhounds in my short career as a vet assistant (low level vet nurse). they love their people and many times i've squished between two of them wanting back scratches. that dog loved you so much for adopting it and giving it a home away from racing.
Point Pleasant has really embraced the whole Mothman angle, though -- probably not seriously, but at least as a way to distinguish the town from other, similar towns. They have a Mothman statue, a Mothman festival, and a Mothman museum. The statue is OK, but not really designed from the accounts of purported witnesses. I haven't been to the festival. The museum is somewhat disappointing.
I go fishing with my brother for days at a time out in some remote spots. If ever I hear something rattling around along the bank or up in the trees after dark I start trying to convince him it's The Mothman 🤣
They really embraced the movie that was made and now about half of the museum is dedicated to the movie and its props rather than the actual event/story itself.
Aw come on don't you want a vacation picture with a giant silver moth behind you. Or one of you chilling out with the two Men in Black dummies at the museum. I have both of those. I'm from WV and while the museum isn't quality, it's better than some. Lol. It's kind of on level with the Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine that we took field trips to every couple of years. A for effort on their parts. The Mothman museum is in an old store and I'm pretty sure I remember that the owner runs another business nearby and just seems to know when some shows interest and appears out of nowhere greet visitors. Small town America. I've never been to festival either.
Because of this, the Anthony Wayne/ "Hi-Level" bridge in Toledo, Ohio was completely refurbished recently and the original spans put back in place. Now our bridge here is the last suspension-type bridge left in Ohio, spanning the Maumee River.
Im so sorry for your loss. I adopted a retired service dog years ago. Her name was honey. She was a german shepherd and they said she had maybe 2 years left.. she ended up living another 8! Died at the age of 15.
So sorry to hear about your puppers. Pet adoption is the best thing but they sure do leave a mark on your heart. And thank you for covering this. Living right near the site, its always fascinating to see how others view the tragedy and understand it.
Mothman is huge in Point Pleasant, even a life size statue in the middle of town. They have a festival dedicated to him I've always wanted to attend. However he was never thought to be the cause of the collapse. Instead a warning to residents of impending danger. It's nice to know brother moth is a helpful creature, one that can even detect microscopic defeats in steel.
Great video as usual. I didnt know you were a fellow greyhound owner, we had our first one for 8 years before he crossed the bridge so I know how difficult it is having that big empty space on the sofa. We only managed 3 months before we had to adopt another retied racer
I like the idea of inserting the, Patented, PDS later on. I think more people need to watch your videos and the scale may shy them away. Keep up your great work!
A lot of my family is from Point Pleasant. My uncle worked for the Army Corps of Engineers and was one of the people who recovered bodies from the water when the bridge collapsed. My childhood was filled with memories and stories of that night and the Mothman.
I can hear a slight background scraping/scratching when you talk (a bit like a snare reverberating in a room). Not sure if it's an issue with your mic, room, or software, but just something I noticed. Other than that a 10/10 video as usual. Definately worth the sub and a like.
Hugs about your dog🥺 It is so hard that their life spans are so short, but look at it the other way around; they get to be cared for by clumsy angels that don't seem to get old. Thank you for loving your dog💗
We adopted a 7 week old Golden Retriever whose original owner had an adult female and Biscuit kept trying to nurse her (she was not his mother lol) ... She didn't like it and so they had to re-home him. We had our fluffy baby for 11 years before we lost him. It's been three years now and it wasn't until last June when my adult son moved out of state and we adopted his two month old Pit Bull puppy that my heart felt I could love another dog. She's my sweetheart now. Aside from me, she's the only girl in my house full of boys. Houses don't feel like a home without a dog, I've come to realize. While Bailey will never take Biscuit's place, rescuing a pit bull is a wonderful thing in it's own right. And I'm glad we took her in! I'm sorry for the loss of your beloved pup! 💔
One question: You mentioned that the initial deck of the bridge was made from wood, then eventually topped over with asphalt, and then concrete. Those added materials would have also made the deck about 10x or more the weight for the structure to support. Even cars and trucks at the time were light by comparison as the bridge was added onto.
Sorry for the loss of your pup. I’m sure you gave him a good life full of love and joy! We have a full size greyhound and two Italian greyhounds. Such sweet pups!
This collapse put my uncles Laundromat out of business! It was located in Newport, Ohio. When the Silver Bridge collapsed, the closed it’s twin upstream in St. Marys, WV. Loosing the bridge meant he lost the West Virginia customers kneading his business to fail.
So sorry to hear about your doggo. I like the idea of putting the rating at the end, definitely enjoyed forming my own idea and revising it as the video went on, and then seeing how it matched up! (I went for 6 and 8)
Deepest sympathy and empathy to you regarding your sweet doggo. I appreciate that you added the Mothman theory, you wouldn’t have heard the end of it if you hadn’t come back with an edit haha. My great aunt rescued retired racing Whippets (like a smaller greyhound). She had 3 in my lifetime and they lived a long spoiled life 🌈🐾 Much love!
Hi John....2 years later i find this video and I'm sorry about your fur baby :( i hope things are better now for you but i know it still hurts. Thank you for adopting! I hope more people follow your lead!
The numbers around 1:45 are peculiar -- the diagram showing overall length of 1756 feet including a center span of 756 feet would mean that the approaches were 500 feet each if they were the same, but the audio says they were 380 feet each.
I would like to tell you that I’m so sorry for the loss of your lovely friend and compagnon. My thoughts are with you both. Thank you for showing him in this video. Again my sincere condolences for the loss of your best friend.
I would like to take a moment to marvel at the fact that those eyebars can be made in such quantity in the first place. It might sound trite to someone today, but even things such as nails for regular carpentry, used to take a ton of time to make (yes, forged nails are still better than ones made of wire in many regards).
The 11 inch link holes got my brain wondering how they manufactured all that back in those days. No computerised machinery back then. It was all controlled by hand and using templates and such.
The bridge was built in the 1920s, not the 1320s. It was manual, but they didn't need magic. Probably forged with a huge hydraulic press just like such things are made today. Machining probably didn't use electric motors as a power source, likely steam, combustion engines, or even water power. And they had templates and jigs instead of CNC to control the operations. But the business end of all the tools would be the same as they are today.
@@johnladuke6475 Agree, although I would expect by 1920 electric motors would be the dominant form of power, and there was plenty of mechanised automation - capstan lathes for example and of course power looms had been automatically weaving complex patterns for decades before then.
@@tin2001 You should look up some of the massive presses that the US has made over the years, start with the Heavy Press Program. This is a little after the bridge here, but it makes for an impressive starting point and its not like the actual types of machines didn't exist before the 50s either, they just grew to monstrous proportions during the cold war. Then start looking at stuff like drop hammers/steam hammers and other large metalworking machinery.... they are amazing. addendum: Its not like the US is the only nation that has these things, but there are not many other places that have ones of comparable size. Just imagine the amount of work, from design to fabrication, for a 50,000 ton press.....
@@johnladuke6475 Or with a bigass drop hammer. Which is really just a more modern version of a trip hammer, which go back 2-3k years, depending on who you ask. :)
@@PlainlyDifficult would you ever consider making a video on how you research and make an episode. I am a uni student and you always present information in such a clear, annotated and well layed out order. It's something to aspire to. Especially your diagrams they help visualise the story a lot for me. Many thanks Toby :)
Awww All the best for the loss of your furry family member, Ive recently lost my Old Boy too, at almost 13. Love your video and it was great that you mentioned MOTHMAN in there, as that cryptid is synonymous with the SILVER BRIDGE.
I feel kind of bad for Mothman. He's just out there minding his own business, doing mothman things, and people blame him for anything bad that happens within 100 miles, like he had anything to do with it. He's just a giant moth, there's no way he can collapse a bridge. He has a hard enough time with the laws of aerodynamics. Condolences for your loss. They leave us much too soon, and in another sense they never leave. My last dog departed the same year yours arrived, and I still think of him every day.
In 2015 I lived in the town of Galipollis Ohio the town that was connected by the bridge to point pleasant West Virginia. There was a lady there that I met and befriended and latter learned that her husband was one of the two never to be found. They were newly weds when it happened expecting their first child. She told me he was coming home from Christmas shopping when the bridge collapsed. Also mothman, so many people there believe in month man and there’s a stainless steel monument and a museum just a block away from where the silver bridge once was. There was another bridge a sister bridge you can say that was designed exactly the same as the silver bridge located up stream in Saint Mary’s West Virginia connecting to Newport Ohio. After the collapse of the silver bridge the one in Saint Mary’s was quickly dismantled and a new bridge built. Fantastic video thanks for sharing.
Sorry for your loss... it's hard to let a pet go... Also this disaster has already been covered on another youtube mini-documentary but without patented disaster scale nor schematics explanation. I was waiting for this one to be covered too on this channel. It's a Tacoma-style classic case of engineering failure, the kind that painfully gave lessons. The worst part of the story is that eyebars suspension bridges had been constructed before this one, but with redundancy, and these are still standing...
I’m so sorry for the loss of your dog. Adopting a retired racing dog is a wonderful idea. I am a cat owner myself, and all of them are rescued. Adopt, don’t shop!
I skipped to the end to see your rating and then went back to watch. Can't fool me! Still don't know if (1) is the most or the least deadly though, so lots of mystery left! Thanks for all the work.
The second I heard “a cheaper option” I despaired. Cheaper and bridge construction are two things that should not go together.
Cheaper is usually a bad sign for anything to be honest. When will people learn cheaper is never better.
Construction in general really. It seems to be upwards of 95% of these construction disasters are caused entirely by someone going cheaper somewhere along the line.
This is only second to the "Cheaper-Dam Construction" combo. That one's basically a death sentence for entire downriver communities.
Cheaper seems to be synonymous with efficiency these days. And buzzwords like "efficiency" are a keystone of misdirection.
Net zero, low emissions... carbon neutral? Simple terms used to blame someone else for a mess we've all caused. Try to give up air conditioning and modern utilities. Even simple, "trivial" accommodations are so standard that they can't be ignored. Ask yourself: How long could I survive without a refrigerator, lights, car, indoor plumbing... phone?
Things aren't cheap, and nothing is ever truly free. Sorry if you haven't noticed that we can't all get handouts. Greed won't fuel this boat, but it could easily sink it.
My apologies to those who were lost in this incident. There's a good chance they never knew they had sealed their fate. After all, why would anyone de-rate the strength of an aging bridge? Or tell anyone about it? That's just an expensive way to lose your job!
together with "in [year] it was sold to [company or state name]"
Obviously the Mothman didn’t cause it. He was trying to warn them.
Oh, so he gets the same raw deal as Spider-Man and the X-Men always have to cope with.
Mothman: Hey! Humans! Your bridge is need of major repairs, and if not fixed soon, could result in a terrible disaster!
Humans: Aaaaahhhh! Mothman!!!
Some researchers thought it was a large owl with its eyes reflecting the car lights.
The fact that the sightings stopped after the bridge collapsed has the obvious explanation that nobody was driving through the area because the bridge was out. But still...
He still could have caused it then felt guilty so he warned ppl 🤷🏽
Sorry for your dog John, it had a good life at 12 years old, glad you were able to save it from the race rings. And as always, very good video, good production and simple-yet-complete explanations.
I was wondering why he sounded so down in his narration for this video. Always a sad thing to lose a good buddy like that. Yet that is life.... whatever is given, is eventually taken away. :(
Dang. I knew something wasn’t right
Condolences my friend.
@@bearb1asting Yeah I could tell something was wrong, I’ve watched all of his videos and this one just seemed different. Losing your loyal companion is a type of grief unlike anything else. Also, John if you’re reading this I want to express my condolences, keep up your amazing work, you and your content are truly brilliant sir.
I'm
Would you ever consider making a video on how you research and make an episode. I am a uni student and you always present information in such a clear, annotated and well layed out order. It's something to aspire to. Especially your diagrams they help visualise the story a lot for me.
Many thanks
Toby :)
Thank you I really appreciate your support! Maybe I should do a patreon/YT membership exclusive!
@@PlainlyDifficult that sounds like a really good idea :) I'd join just for that. Although life is just hard to finance as a student but this choice would definitely benefit my future employment and current education :). Thanks again for what you do you're a good roll modle for many of us :)
@@antlerman7644 In the meantime, might I suggest OverlySarcasticProductions, who have actually DONE a video about researching and producing their videos... You might just get a kick out of Red and Blue and some of their other antics along the way... depending on how much you like folklore, myth, and antiquity.. ;o)
@@antlerman7644 there's a good ted talk on studying called "learning how to learn"
@@PlainlyDifficult I would watch that!
So sorry about your pup, and thank you for adopting a furry friend. My picture is of Anna, a lump of old, fuzzy love who came to me from a shelter (after she'd been shuttled from shelter to shelter for years because no one wants a cat; everyone wants a kitten). I hope you know that you gave your pup a wonderful life the day you opened your home and heart to a friend in need.
Thank you so much!
I'd agree with the ranking. This is a collapse that we still study in engineering classes as a perfect example of why adding redundancy and eliminating/minimizing single points of failure are so important. Especially in civil engineering where large projects, such as bridges, dams, and levees, can pose a huge public risk if they fail catastrophically. After all, if the arm on your excavator snaps off, it might injure or even kill someone, but if a large bridge or dam collapses it can hurt or kill thousands.
I’m also in engineering! This channel has helped me gain a very healthy respect for safety regulations, double+ checking, and not being cheap or shortsighted when it comes to engineering designs... or protocols (especially nuclear waste protocols) 👀
I live near Point Pleasant, WV, and have been there MANY times. The Silver Bridge has a plaque where it once stood, and it's collapse is documented in detail at the nearby Mothman Museum. It's interesting how that collapse really shaped the future of the town..Pt. Pleasant really doesn't seem to have ever gotten past the tragedy. It's a strange town with a weird vibe. I recommend a visit, and if you can get there for the Mothman Festival...it's unique on planet Earth.
I had wondered why Pt Pleasant was on the signage, since it didn't seem like much of a town from the highway (I'm not a native Ohioan or West Virginian, and was just passing through)
I agree, I feel it got stuck long before that, being a cross point between two rivers it should have boomed, ... Itsy home town
the fact that this is talked about in the mothman museum makes me think that the mothman theory was taken more seriously than it should, and that's hilarious
@@p4ngolin It's a tourist thing and a bit of local pride for some residents. I live near Charleston, WV and went there a few years ago. They've got the Mothman museum and Mothman tours. There's a big silver statue of him in town that you can go get a picture with. They also have a museum dedicated to the bridge with no Mothman, men in black, or Native American curses involved. It's just kind of part of the local lore and natives and tourists just enjoy the strangeness. Small town America at it's best, a little weird and a lot proud.
Basic smalltown syndrome. Always holding on to the only noteworthy thing they ever had
So sorry for your loss John. I too have a canine friend who just pushed through her 15th year, and she prefers sleeping more and more these days. Very good video as always, though I disagree on the 7 disaster scale rating, comparing this to bigger infrastructure failures, though it did indeed create more discussion on bridge maintenance and the need for redundancy in designs
Personally, I think the wild conspiracy theories brought about by this disaster warrant the rating. There are people to this day that believe in and search for Monthman (similar to how others treat Bigfoot) because of this bridge collapse. There was even a popular movie about it with Richard Gere (The Mothman Prophecies, 2002).
Such an unexpected consequence of a enduring urban legend is fascinating to say the least.
@@Obsessed_With_Corgis SLANDER. mothman is innocent XD
As a general rule, if you see mothman hovering over something, stay away from it.
Sound advise
if you see a Mothman hovering... you probably are not in a fit state to be driving, pull over!
Hi John. I’m sad to hear that your Greyhound has passed. I’ve been privileged enough to spend time with several rescued pointy 40mph couch potatoes during my lifetime and their gentle affection, loyalty, sense of humour and intelligence always made me wonder why they bothered with me at all 🙂 Then the zoomies kick-in and it’s quite clear that we share a type of eccentric madness punctuated by long lazy spells 😆 I’m gutted for your loss but I’m sure that there are a raft of great memories to help ease the pain.
I was super excited when the Sliver Bridge collapse won the vote to be your next video and you didnt disappoint. As someone that from WV, my grandmother would talk about The Sliver Bridge collapse and the Buffalo Creek Dam disaster. Its great to see someone bring these tragedies to light with knowledge and respect because both are usually overlooked. Great video, much respect.
I'm from point and own property in leon
I grew up just outside of Buffalo Creek, and it really is nice to see someone touch on these local disasters that only we seem to talk about - and with such respect too. For years it felt like the only people who knew anything about Dam #3 was folks in Man, WV, which is these days a town of barely over a thousand, maybe 3-4 if you count the surrounding area… which feels awful and isolating when you start encountering people elsewhere - even the next town over - who just don’t even know.
Kudos to John for taking the approach he does with these things.
This is why you learn history: not to memorize the dates, but to avoid disasters in the future. Thanks for another great video :)
Thank you!
God bless you for adopting a racing dog! Many of my neighbors have done the same. They're extremely sweet and you can see the gratitude in their eyes.
I totally agree!
Anytime I hear "but the engineering design wasn't followed" I get a bad feeling in my gut. Then I saw the design of the vertical beams that would collapse if anything fails on the support cables.. made me think, why they wouldn't add supportive triangular support beams at the base of the vertical beams to keep it from a full collapse. Especially since this bridge was built to withstand much lower standards than was being forced on it in the days of the failure.. I really wish we could do better at, at least innovation type upgrades to our structures. Like not needing to fully tear down and rebuild but just adding on upgrades here and there to further increase the effectiveness of the structure, especially over time and weathering effects. I know it costs money but you know what costs a ton more money? Having to fully rebuild after a catastrophic failure event... So they never are saving money in reality, they're just prolonging when they HAVE to spend money, and how much they spend and the effects it has on innocent citizens..
The engineering wasn’t completely terrible. There are very similar bridges from the same era still standing over the Ohio River. You can’t just add and add and add to a bridge, the heavier the bridge itself, the more load you place on the bridge independent of the dynamic load.
yes and no, the idea of doing a chain bar isn't a terrible idea for this type of bridge, if done well it actually provides more support for it's weight than a traditional cable span. However, if working in machining and manufacturing (which comes with a lot of fabrication) has taught me anything. If there is no redundancy, you have failed. there should never be a condition in any design you work on where a single point of failure takes it down. This was a case of "we want to save a bit too much money"
Honestly though the big one is, if you're going to increase the load capacity of something like a bridge you really have to consider the design, what it was originally made to carry, and what happens when overloaded. This case it was corrosion at a defect. However many bridges have failed due to metal fatigue from being overloaded and unloaded too many times. Every bridge that's metal will eventually suffer fatigue issues, the defect in this bridge was sped up by the overloading, however it would have failed eventually anyway.
The only way that this could have been saved, would have been having a redundant link system, so individual bars could be removed, so they could be inspected, most bridges like this are double rated, they have twice the support it needs to stand so 4 links or more, so the two on either the inside or outside chain can be removed, and replaced, or inspected without risking the structure.
I've seen it be a good thing occasionally, if they decide to overbuild something to save time. But usually this is my reaction too. There's usually a reason the engineers designed it the way they did and making big changes without having another engineer double check them is a fast way to run into trouble.
I worked on a sewer project once where the contractor who built it had gone from 6 sizes of pipe to 3. So they rounded up all the sizes they eliminated, so an 18" pipe was replaced with 24". The system ended up having a lot more capacity than planned and when we went to prepare for an expansion project we found we could actually skip a large part of what we expected since it still had capacity to spare. But seeing a contractor overbuild something to save money is a lot more rare than seeing corners cut, sadly.
Far more often then not I'd imagine changing the design has a seriously negative tone for whatever comes after it, I thought the same thing.
"The actual design called for this, but we did something else" I think that's how the Hyatt got it's collapse as well.
It’s so nice to see how far you’ve come with your videos. Been following you for a long time now but still your narration and animations get better and better from video to video. Keep up the great work.
Suggestion: do the Eschede Train Desaster.
I really appreciate it thank you!
Thank you for the suggestion!
Ah, yes! You mentioned the Hi Carpenter Bridge! That bridge was between St Marys, WV and Newport, OH. Local lore has it as a twin to the Silver Bridge, and it was closed and removed after the determination of the cause of the Silver Bridge collapse. The east (WV) approach was left in place as it was the only access to Middle Island (which was a farm at the time). Presumably it was privately owned by the farm.
After the removal, river crossing was by ferry for the time it took for the replacement bridge to be built.
Yes, I grew up in St Marys, and remember both the ferry and the opening of the replacement bridge 😉
Lol - and when you are talking about the replacement bridge, I'm pretty sure you are showing a photo of the current Hi Carpenter Bridge
I love the editorial inclusion of Moth Man like it’s a real thing. “Ya, know a Moth Man incident. These things sometimes happen.” (my own quote, not from video) :)
My condolences about your dog. Your videos, although plainly difficult, have been a great resource and learning tool for myself and I'm sure many others. Keep up the fantastic work!
I am surprised that the bridge managed to hold up so long. Being overloaded not just by much three times as heavy vehicles, but also the replacement reinforced concrete driveway instead of the previous wooden/asphalt layer surely added much more weight, resulting in both static and dynamic stresses far exceeding original design. Some bridges were close to collapse, being also overloaded and used way past their expected lifespan, but they did not collapse, as they were closely monitored. One such bridge served almost 60 years instead of the designed 10 and its driveway, originally with wooden pavement blocks being replaced by heavy reinforced concrete panels with an asphalt layer on top. Originally a cheap, temporary, "war bridge", it served well into the 21th century. Without collapsing. There were some local and serious failures on the bridge, but nobody got hurt. The bridge was already closed for car traffic at that time so a potential disaster was avoided. But it showed that the closure was justified.
Which bridge (and where) are we talking about?:)
@@antonberglund117 The Old bridge in Bratislava. After retreating Nazi forces had blown the original bridge, a makeshift "temporary" bridge was built in record time, planned only to last for 10 years. It served almost 60. It was then taken apart and a new Old bridge was built. It still has the name Old bridge, even as it is the second newest over the Danube as of 2023. I keep forgetting the recently opened bridge that carries the D4 motorway.
@@erikziak1249 Thanks for sharing, intressting how "temporary" things becomes permanent. The same goes for both buildings and trains.
Excellent video, as per usual.
Condolences, it's hard to lose a family member. I can't physically give a full time dog a good home but your advice is solid; retired dogs need a good home. I'm currently owned by seven cats, all feral rescues, four of whom we found in our neighborhood. All are "mutts" of unknown provenance but care and attention have melded them into a well-behaved happy pride. We've rescued and placed three others over the years. Ours are the light of our lives. :)
Rest in peace to your wonderful dog, you've done a wonderful job taking them in and giving all the love you can in their older years- but I'm sorry for your loss. Amazing video as usual, I hope you aren't pushing yourself in tough times.
As someone who grew up in this region, I've heard stories about this bridge since childhood and have collected many newspaper articles about it. It's a tragedy still remembered every year and everyone knew someone affected by it.
Thanks for making this well-researched, respectful video. Well done.
"the other theory... Mothman" I nearly snorted my shake up my nose.
That would explain why I thought this bridge disaster sounded vaguely familiar. I've watched shows that only depicted this from the cryptid angle. And I agree, I think undetected cracks are far more sinister than a literal harbinger of doom. But people really like a story that anthropomorphizes the danger around them; it's more accessible than the cluster of failures that actually doomed this bridge.
10:25 RIP to a good doggo.
"Was the water cold on Dec 15?"
"It was Indrid Cold."
Really and truly the mothman is seen as a messenger of doom he wasn't responsible for the collapse
Been watching the channel for a while now and love the content. Sorry to hear about your canine buddy. Right up there with losing a human member of the family in the bad news you can have.
Thank you I really appreciate your kind words!
I skipped to the end to see your rating and then went back to watch. Can't fool me! Still don't know if 1 is the most or the least deadly though, so lots of mystery left! Thanks for all the work.
Fair enough!
So sorry for your loss John, but I’m glad you gave your dog a loving and safe home. So, I’m from West Virginia, and I remember mom telling me they were going to visit family in Ohio the day the Silver Bridge collapsed. They stopped in Point Pleasant for dinner before moving on (family lived on the other side of Columbus). They crossed the bridge, and later found out that the bridge collapsed about an hour after they crossed.
Awesome upload John, Im so sorry to see the loss of your fuzzy buddy man. I know it's hard to lose a pup but atleast you had 12 good years with them. Not having redundancy in something like this is insane. I mean you wouldn't fly a plane that didn't have several instances of redundancy built in. If not for safety then certainly so you could do a more thorough inspection. Plus going from wood planks and asphalt to concrete grid I am sure the weight increased a great deal. In addition to the increased weight of vehicles, and increased traffic of heavier vehicles. Just like a bridge build for the weight of vehicles and traffic of the 60s would be insufficient for vehicles of today as well as the higher population and thus increased traffic.
Your comment hits all kinds of good points. Thought I'd just add this info. In the case of redundancy in air planes look up the Air Alaska plane that crash off the coast of California due to a failed jackscrew in the rudder. There was no redundancy for a failure in that part. Air Alaska 261.
Another well done video.
Much love to a departed puppy and I would imagine a good friend. ❤️
Hard to believe engineers would build non-redundant structures like that; however, cost and time-to-build are always going to be pressures on deployments.
(And I wasn't scared when I watched the Mothman Prophecies movie.... you were! 🫣).
I knew I recognized the name of that bridge. Local West Virginian and Mothman fanatic here; some theories state Mothman was not the cause of the collapse, but merely trying to warn people; this later became a joke in several forms of media, including a podcast made by locals where a seer character was literally Mothman, and considered the Silver Bridge to not be his finest moment.
As an aside, I really appreciate your coverage of civil disasters in West Virginia. I grew up around Buffalo Creek, and it’s rare to hear anyone talk about what happened there outside of the locals. Your level of research and respect is a welcome change from some of the… less kind things I’ve heard about us hillfolk. Thank you.
And my condolences for the loss of your furbaby. It’s never easy. Take care of yourself, John, and rest easy knowing you gave them the best life.
So sorry to hear about the passing of your sweet dog
I grew up half an hour from there. The families are still haunted by the loss of so many loved ones. Everyone knew someone on that bridge. I don’t think any of the families have gotten over it- most people in the area talk about the bridge collapse as if it happened only a decade ago.
One of my own family members had gotten off work late that day, and was stuck in the traffic waiting to go onto the bridge. Being late saved his life that day, but he was still scarred by what he witnessed as the bridge collapsed.
Thank you for covering this
Thank you for such a great video.
Last week, we too lost a dear pet, whom we rescued 12 years prior. Never doubt you gave him/her the best life.
Sorry to hear that
I have thoroughly enjoyed many of your videos. Knowing that you have adopted greyhounds makes me appreciate your work even more. I have adopted 9 greyhounds since 1999.
I’ve been waiting for this one! My grandmother lives about 20 minutes away from this bridge. Has been for about 60 years now. She was in her 20s when this happened, and every generation thereafter in the area made it tradition to explore the woods and old bunker nearby (before it was closed off) in search of the “mothman.”
As absolutely tragic as this bridge collapse was, the legend of the mothman is one of the only things keeping this town and nearby areas afloat. It’s genuinely heartwarming to see people travel fairly decent distances to visit the mothman museum and take pictures with the statue outside of it. My grandma was FLOORED when I told her how popular the mothman had gotten, because for decades it was mostly a local legend before exploding in popularity on the internet in the 2000s and early 2010s.
About two years ago, my mother, grandma (now in her 80s), and I hopped over the short metal gate to continue the tradition, with it being my first time doing so.
She doesn’t get out much now, so it was really nice being able to get her out of the house and go to the museum, then go for a walk in the woods. Even though we had to pick tics off of each other before going back in the house.
Definitely a fair warning for anyone who wants to visit those woods, tics are EVERYWHERE. West Virginia is notorious for them. Please, be better than me and actually dress properly for walking around in tall, tic infested grass. I was very lucky to only have one on me, and it didn’t make it to my skin yet - but it was close. It was crawling around my my hair 😖
I'm glad you added the bit about Mothman, not because it's a plausible theory, but because it's tied into the lore of the Silver Bridge collapse. Alleged sightings only started just prior to the collapse and tapered off shortly after. So, although not tied to the collapse in reality, it is an interesting side note.
Alleged sightings *in that area,* if "just prior" extend to a year. Mothman has been seen before and since elsewhere. Many Mothman sightings may be loons -- literally.
Hey John, sorry to hear about your loss. Hope you're doing okay. Just wanted to say that I think it's preferable to have the disaster and legacy scales at the beginning of the video rather than the end. It helps to gauge the video before you go through it and gives a lot of context on the severity of the event.
Are bridges more dangerous than elevators? I ask knowing that more knowledgeable people will reply, my guess is yes.
I would say it all depends on how well and often service is done. Anything can fail if it has been working long enough. Since im used to Germany safety standards i cant hold myself back from looking for the safety sticker on any machinery that could kill me. If the elevator had no service im gonna use the stairs O.o
I would assume.
... However, the elevators at my job are getting frisky.😵
I would say bridges are more deadly
As a general rule, walking across a street is more dangerous than riding an elevator or driving across a bridge.
It of course depends on the street and time of day as much as it depends on the inspection/service interval of an elevator or a bridge.
However, there are laws that regulate inspection/service intervals, whereas there are often laws against you just walking across a street wherever and whenever you like. Long story short: Maybe.
I would agree with Jonny Smith and add in that I believe bridges are more dangerous than elevators. It is much easier to shutdown an elevator for inspection or maintenance. Bridges on the other hand are more difficult as shutting down a major bridge will lead to redirecting traffic onto roads that are not always designed for heavy traffic loads. So unless something severely wrong is discovered with a bridge they are more than likely to just let it be, and hope for the best.
Sorry for your loss John. My heart goes out to you and your family. Thank you for the video.
Thank you John! Excellent work as always!! My heart breaks for your loss. There are no good words at a time like this. Just know that we are thinking about you!
Another well presented, interesting & easy to watch (without any unnecessary waffle) video John. Thank you for postig.
Great videos! Thanks for the upload!
Glad you like them!
We recently lost our dog a month before his 12th birthday. I'm very sorry for your loss. Great video, as always.
Thank you!
Sorry for your dog passing away, I'm sure you gave him the best possible life. Quite noble from you to rescue him and promote it in your (again) great video.
Your ratings were spot on, impeccable video and what a cute puppy at the end
Thank you very much!
Sorry to hear about your beautiful grey hound. We lost our Cooper 5 years ago yesterday. Grey hounds are beyond the best. And thanks for another great and informative video.
The Three Sisters Bridges in Pittsburgh, PA, also have chain links but those spans have redundancy as well.
sorry to hear about you dog. i've taken care of a few greyhounds in my short career as a vet assistant (low level vet nurse). they love their people and many times i've squished between two of them wanting back scratches. that dog loved you so much for adopting it and giving it a home away from racing.
Point Pleasant has really embraced the whole Mothman angle, though -- probably not seriously, but at least as a way to distinguish the town from other, similar towns. They have a Mothman statue, a Mothman festival, and a Mothman museum. The statue is OK, but not really designed from the accounts of purported witnesses. I haven't been to the festival. The museum is somewhat disappointing.
I go fishing with my brother for days at a time out in some remote spots. If ever I hear something rattling around along the bank or up in the trees after dark I start trying to convince him it's The Mothman 🤣
Yeah I agree I think they grasp at it to get more money
@@nline2blast722 Yes, for money, but also for a kind of civic identity.
They really embraced the movie that was made and now about half of the museum is dedicated to the movie and its props rather than the actual event/story itself.
Aw come on don't you want a vacation picture with a giant silver moth behind you. Or one of you chilling out with the two Men in Black dummies at the museum. I have both of those. I'm from WV and while the museum isn't quality, it's better than some. Lol. It's kind of on level with the Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine that we took field trips to every couple of years. A for effort on their parts. The Mothman museum is in an old store and I'm pretty sure I remember that the owner runs another business nearby and just seems to know when some shows interest and appears out of nowhere greet visitors. Small town America. I've never been to festival either.
Because of this, the Anthony Wayne/ "Hi-Level" bridge in Toledo, Ohio was completely refurbished recently and the original spans put back in place. Now our bridge here is the last suspension-type bridge left in Ohio, spanning the Maumee River.
Im so sorry for your loss. I adopted a retired service dog years ago. Her name was honey. She was a german shepherd and they said she had maybe 2 years left.. she ended up living another 8! Died at the age of 15.
aww bless 15 years is a good run!
Thanks
So sorry to hear about your puppers. Pet adoption is the best thing but they sure do leave a mark on your heart.
And thank you for covering this. Living right near the site, its always fascinating to see how others view the tragedy and understand it.
Mothman is huge in Point Pleasant, even a life size statue in the middle of town. They have a festival dedicated to him I've always wanted to attend. However he was never thought to be the cause of the collapse. Instead a warning to residents of impending danger. It's nice to know brother moth is a helpful creature, one that can even detect microscopic defeats in steel.
I’m so sorry for your loss. Losing man’s best friend is never easy. Please know all your fans are supporting you!
Great video as usual.
I didnt know you were a fellow greyhound owner, we had our first one for 8 years before he crossed the bridge so I know how difficult it is having that big empty space on the sofa.
We only managed 3 months before we had to adopt another retied racer
I’m so sorry about your pup, but thank you for giving them a loving life.
You are so kind
I like the idea of inserting the, Patented, PDS later on. I think more people need to watch your videos and the scale may shy them away. Keep up your great work!
you know its a good day when your phone tells you theres a new documentary from plainly difficult that surely contains death and destruction.
A lot of my family is from Point Pleasant. My uncle worked for the Army Corps of Engineers and was one of the people who recovered bodies from the water when the bridge collapsed. My childhood was filled with memories and stories of that night and the Mothman.
I can hear a slight background scraping/scratching when you talk (a bit like a snare reverberating in a room). Not sure if it's an issue with your mic, room, or software, but just something I noticed. Other than that a 10/10 video as usual. Definately worth the sub and a like.
Thank you! It was some building work outside, I have subsequently changes microphones!
@@PlainlyDifficult ahhh. I really appreciate how connected you are with your community John, thanks for the answer.
@@PlainlyDifficult I thought it was the bridge collapsing
Hugs about your dog🥺 It is so hard that their life spans are so short, but look at it the other way around; they get to be cared for by clumsy angels that don't seem to get old. Thank you for loving your dog💗
Sorry to hear about your doggo passing ❤❤🐕🐕
Excellent video, as always.
Thank you very much!
We adopted a 7 week old Golden Retriever whose original owner had an adult female and Biscuit kept trying to nurse her (she was not his mother lol) ... She didn't like it and so they had to re-home him. We had our fluffy baby for 11 years before we lost him. It's been three years now and it wasn't until last June when my adult son moved out of state and we adopted his two month old Pit Bull puppy that my heart felt I could love another dog. She's my sweetheart now. Aside from me, she's the only girl in my house full of boys. Houses don't feel like a home without a dog, I've come to realize. While Bailey will never take Biscuit's place, rescuing a pit bull is a wonderful thing in it's own right. And I'm glad we took her in! I'm sorry for the loss of your beloved pup! 💔
One question: You mentioned that the initial deck of the bridge was made from wood, then eventually topped over with asphalt, and then concrete. Those added materials would have also made the deck about 10x or more the weight for the structure to support. Even cars and trucks at the time were light by comparison as the bridge was added onto.
Sorry for the loss of your pup. I’m sure you gave him a good life full of love and joy! We have a full size greyhound and two Italian greyhounds. Such sweet pups!
sending love. i can't imagine how you're feeling, but my mutt and i are taking a longer walk in your honor today, thanks for the upload buddy ❤️
You are so welcome
This collapse put my uncles Laundromat out of business! It was located in Newport, Ohio. When the Silver Bridge collapsed, the closed it’s twin upstream in St. Marys, WV. Loosing the bridge meant he lost the West Virginia customers kneading his business to fail.
So sorry to hear about your doggo. I like the idea of putting the rating at the end, definitely enjoyed forming my own idea and revising it as the video went on, and then seeing how it matched up! (I went for 6 and 8)
I live about 15 minutes from Point Pleasant. Thanks for talking about this. 👍
Another fantastic job of research and editing, much appreciated!! Surry Virginia
Thank you!
Deepest sympathy and empathy to you regarding your sweet doggo. I appreciate that you added the Mothman theory, you wouldn’t have heard the end of it if you hadn’t come back with an edit haha. My great aunt rescued retired racing Whippets (like a smaller greyhound). She had 3 in my lifetime and they lived a long spoiled life 🌈🐾 Much love!
Sorry for the loss of you dog. And thank you for giving it such a good home for 12 years. Love your videos. Keep up the good work.
Hi John....2 years later i find this video and I'm sorry about your fur baby :( i hope things are better now for you but i know it still hurts. Thank you for adopting! I hope more people follow your lead!
I could listen to your videos for hour! Everything is described so clearly 😊
Glad you like them!
Only an hour?
Thanks!
Sending prayers and love. Bless you for adopting and giving that pooch a loving home.
Aww sweet doggo is on the rainbow bridge, thankful for everything you shared during his time here ❤️
The numbers around 1:45 are peculiar -- the diagram showing overall length of 1756 feet including a center span of 756 feet would mean that the approaches were 500 feet each if they were the same, but the audio says they were 380 feet each.
I would like to tell you that I’m so sorry for the loss of your lovely friend and compagnon. My thoughts are with you both. Thank you for showing him in this video. Again my sincere condolences for the loss of your best friend.
Sorry for your loss. We lost our greyhound in April, they are amazing pups
I would like to take a moment to marvel at the fact that those eyebars can be made in such quantity in the first place. It might sound trite to someone today, but even things such as nails for regular carpentry, used to take a ton of time to make (yes, forged nails are still better than ones made of wire in many regards).
The 11 inch link holes got my brain wondering how they manufactured all that back in those days. No computerised machinery back then. It was all controlled by hand and using templates and such.
The bridge was built in the 1920s, not the 1320s. It was manual, but they didn't need magic. Probably forged with a huge hydraulic press just like such things are made today. Machining probably didn't use electric motors as a power source, likely steam, combustion engines, or even water power. And they had templates and jigs instead of CNC to control the operations. But the business end of all the tools would be the same as they are today.
@@johnladuke6475 Agree, although I would expect by 1920 electric motors would be the dominant form of power, and there was plenty of mechanised automation - capstan lathes for example and of course power looms had been automatically weaving complex patterns for decades before then.
@@tin2001 You should look up some of the massive presses that the US has made over the years, start with the Heavy Press Program. This is a little after the bridge here, but it makes for an impressive starting point and its not like the actual types of machines didn't exist before the 50s either, they just grew to monstrous proportions during the cold war. Then start looking at stuff like drop hammers/steam hammers and other large metalworking machinery.... they are amazing.
addendum: Its not like the US is the only nation that has these things, but there are not many other places that have ones of comparable size. Just imagine the amount of work, from design to fabrication, for a 50,000 ton press.....
@@johnladuke6475 Or with a bigass drop hammer. Which is really just a more modern version of a trip hammer, which go back 2-3k years, depending on who you ask. :)
My exams can wait for sometime. Will watch this first
Good luck with the test!
@@PlainlyDifficult would you ever consider making a video on how you research and make an episode. I am a uni student and you always present information in such a clear, annotated and well layed out order. It's something to aspire to. Especially your diagrams they help visualise the story a lot for me.
Many thanks
Toby :)
Awww All the best for the loss of your furry family member, Ive recently lost my Old Boy too, at almost 13. Love your video and it was great that you mentioned MOTHMAN in there, as that cryptid is synonymous with the SILVER BRIDGE.
Great video as always, we adopted a Chow nine years ago that passed recently.
As a huge fan of the MOTHMAN PROPHECIES, I have
eagerly been awating for you to do a video on this one!
I feel kind of bad for Mothman. He's just out there minding his own business, doing mothman things, and people blame him for anything bad that happens within 100 miles, like he had anything to do with it. He's just a giant moth, there's no way he can collapse a bridge. He has a hard enough time with the laws of aerodynamics.
Condolences for your loss. They leave us much too soon, and in another sense they never leave. My last dog departed the same year yours arrived, and I still think of him every day.
I always look forward to hearing about the UK weather at the end. Thank you for bringing me happiness. Condolences on your pupper Q.Q
Sorry to hear about the loss of your dog. I adopted a retired racing Greyhound last June. One of the best decisions I've made.
In 2015 I lived in the town of Galipollis Ohio the town that was connected by the bridge to point pleasant West Virginia. There was a lady there that I met and befriended and latter learned that her husband was one of the two never to be found. They were newly weds when it happened expecting their first child. She told me he was coming home from Christmas shopping when the bridge collapsed. Also mothman, so many people there believe in month man and there’s a stainless steel monument and a museum just a block away from where the silver bridge once was. There was another bridge a sister bridge you can say that was designed exactly the same as the silver bridge located up stream in Saint Mary’s West Virginia connecting to Newport Ohio. After the collapse of the silver bridge the one in Saint Mary’s was quickly dismantled and a new bridge built. Fantastic video thanks for sharing.
Given a bridge collapsed in the US recently due to lack of maintenance... I would say the legacy has been lost.
Sorry for your loss....Loss of a pet can be very hard, I know!! Great work on this and all your productions! Keep them coming...
Sorry for the loss of your dog. Losing friends is always hard. I'm glad you gave them a good home.
I adopted a Greyhound too, they are so loving. I'm so sorry for your loss, but they were clearly very happy with you💗
Your videos give me something to look forward to on Tuesday mornings
Sorry for your loss... it's hard to let a pet go...
Also this disaster has already been covered on another youtube mini-documentary but without patented disaster scale nor schematics explanation. I was waiting for this one to be covered too on this channel. It's a Tacoma-style classic case of engineering failure, the kind that painfully gave lessons. The worst part of the story is that eyebars suspension bridges had been constructed before this one, but with redundancy, and these are still standing...
I’m so sorry for the loss of your dog. Adopting a retired racing dog is a wonderful idea. I am a cat owner myself, and all of them are rescued. Adopt, don’t shop!
Nice video. Didnt knew about that accident before. Is it only me or is there some static noise in the background of the normal recordings?
Sadly yes we had building works outside the day I recorded it
@@PlainlyDifficult a darn, well it is what it is. Still thanks for makeing it happen :)
Nice touch drawing one of the cars on the bridge as being rusty
I skipped to the end to see your rating and then went back to watch. Can't fool me! Still don't know if (1) is the most or the least deadly though, so lots of mystery left! Thanks for all the work.
Sorry about your loss, it’s awful going through losses of pets
Thank you