Bang: big bridge blocking boulder broken by blasting

Following a recent earthquake in China, the roads and highways had to be cleared quickly to allow emergency deliveries, as well as general transport. One key bridge was blocked by a massive boulder that had been dislodged by the quake. As the boulder was too large to move using the excavators or bulldozers that the bridge could support, a decision was made to use blasting instead to clear the path. A drilling rig was brought into place and this machine bored a blasthole into the errant boulder, with the hol
April 24, 2013 Read time: 1 min
Following a recent earthquake in China, the roads and highways had to be cleared quickly to allow emergency deliveries, as well as general transport. One key bridge was blocked by a massive boulder that had been dislodged by the quake. As the boulder was too large to move using the excavators or bulldozers that the bridge could support, a decision was made to use blasting instead to clear the path. A drilling rig was brought into place and this machine bored a blasthole into the errant boulder, with the hole then being charged with conventional explosives. The blast then broke the boulder into pieces small enough for lighter machinery to move out of the way, allowing the bridge to be reopened to traffic.

Related Content

  • Winter maintenance challenge
    February 29, 2012
    Many countries had their most severe winter for years, but it could have been much worse without the right equipment and technology as Patrick Smith reports. As many countries faced up to the 2010-2011 winter, hard-pressed maintenance teams did their best to keep things moving on the roads. With some of the lowest temperatures and heaviest snowfalls on record, the UK, Republic of Ireland, Switzerland, France, Scandinavia, Germany, and Belgium were among those affected. Russia, eastern Europe and the USA did
    Read More
  • Engineering elegance in bridge design
    July 9, 2012
    Multi-award-winning bridge designer Michel Virlogeux was the keynote speaker at the recent Austroads Bridge conference, held in Auckland, New Zealand, last month. He had a simple message: Bridge design is the realm of the engineer and should not be given to architects. "Bridge architecture, bridge aesthetics, bridge elegance is the problem of engineers. We must not leave this major part of our job to architects," he said. "I always work with an architect, but the architect is not selecting the structure. To
    Read More
  • Shantui diversifying from core dozer line
    October 14, 2013
    Chinese bulldozer firm Shantui is building on its core competency of bulldozers, broadening its range as well as its operations – Mike Woof writes Bulldozer specialist Shantui has a clear policy of broadening its product range, having grown from being a small producer with a limited model line-up to become a major global manufacturer. The company began its diversification process in 1999, buying a road machinery range and then following this up with a line of concrete equipment in 2008. This process cont
    Read More
  • Brisbane's highway of distinction
    August 2, 2012
    A massive AU$2 billion update of the Gateway Motorway in Queensland is underway to improve an infrastructure stretched by population boom. Report and photographs by Adrian Greeman Just 20 years after the Australian city of Brisbane built its Gateway Motorway with a high slim signature bridge dominating the river skyline, the road is being completely revamped. Some 12km of urban route on the south of the Brisbane River is being expanded to take much increased traffic levels; the north is getting a completely
    Read More

Highlighted Content