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Bridge collapse probe goes high-tech
Laser-guided gizmos and computer modeling employed in search for clues
 Gerald Herbert / AP Flowers are placed in trees as a memorial to those lost in the collapse of the Interstate 35W bridge, as people gather on a hill to view the scene at Gold Medal Park in Minneapolis on Saturday. Even as the recovery efforts and the memorial services continue, authorities are bringing high-tech tools to bear on the investigation. |
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 | Video: Minneapolis bridge collapse |
 Another body recovered following bridge collapse Aug. 10: Divers found another body in the wreckage of a Minneapolis bridge that collapses last week. MSNBC's Alex Witt reports. |
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MINNEAPOLIS - A helicopter with a camera like those used to film Hollywood movies will soon peer into the wreckage of a collapsed bridge. Laser-guided surveying equipment has already helped produce a detailed map of the debris. Software re-creating the disaster on a computer screen may even pinpoint the exact piece of bridge that gave way.
Even with the water still filled with debris, investigators are already using this powerful technological arsenal to get answers about why the bridge collapsed into the Mississippi River last week. It is a quantum leap ahead of investigations of previous eras, when crews literally had to put the pieces of fallen bridge back together.
"Computers and modeling techniques are just light years from what was available 40 years ago," said Ted Galambos, a professor emeritus of structural engineering at the University of Minnesota and an expert in the stability of structural steel. "Now we can have an idea and we can test that on a computer in a few hours."
Even the dive recovery teams are turning to technology for help, using underwater video cameras to look under dangerously unstable debris. Local teams have also requested help from FBI and Navy dive teams in the search for the eight people feared dead in addition to the five confirmed fatalities.
Searchers on Sunday concluded a fourth day in the water without finding any of the missing, the Hennepin County Sheriff's Department said.
State transportation officials said they would begin removing bridge debris from the Mississippi River later this week. Besides helping with the recovery operation, one goal of clearing the wreckage is to open a channel at least 56 feet wide to accommodate barge and boat traffic. Officials offered no timetable for how long it would take.
Months of investigation ahead
Investigators caution that it could take as long as 18 months to complete their exhaustive probe into why Minnesota's busiest bridge collapsed and fell into the river Wednesday.
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On Friday, they were focusing on the south section of the bridge, where they quickly found that the span shifted 81 feet during the collapse.
On Saturday, the north side became the focus. That's where they plan to use a helicopter equipped with a high-resolution camera that can examine the debris in precise detail for any troublesome signs. The camera is kept steady by a gyroscope — which is how Hollywood crews get smooth footage while filming from a vibrating helicopter.
Investigators also plan to watch frame-by-frame enhancements of video of the collapsing bridge. In addition, the FBI used laser-guided surveying equipment to complete a detailed 3-D map of the wreckage, and quickly provided the data to the lead investigation agency, the National Transportation Safety Board.
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