What happened to the Bay Bridge during the 1989 earthquake?
A 1.25-mile segment of the two-level Cypress Street Viaduct along the Nimitz Freeway (Interstate 880), just south of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, collapsed during the quake, resulting in 42 fatalities when the upper level of the road crashed onto the cars on the lower level.
How long was the Bay Bridge closed in 1989?
about a month
In the case of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, however, no close substitute was available. The Bay Bridge had lost one section of the upper deck during the quake and was closed for about a month while the California Department of Transportation made repairs.
Did the Bay bridge ever collapse?
The earthquake significantly damaged the transportation system of the Bay Area. The collapse of the Cypress Street Viaduct (Nimitz Freeway) caused most of the earthquake-related deaths. The San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge was also damaged when a span of the top deck collapsed.
Why was the Bay bridge rebuilt?
In 1989, one of California’s biggest earthquakes in decades hit the Bay Area, causing a partial collapse of the eastern span of the bridge and prompting officials to commit to rebuilding the structure.
Was the Cypress Street Viaduct rebuilt?
Reconstruction around West Oakland In 1997, the Nimitz Freeway was rerouted to loop around the area using a largely ground-level design with more conventional single-level viaduct. This also realigned the ramp from I-80 west to I-580 east/I-880 south which fully completed the Cypress Freeway Realignment in 2001.
What earthquake broke the Bay Bridge?
Loma Prieta earthquake
San Francisco earthquake of 1989, also called Loma Prieta earthquake, major earthquake that struck the San Francisco Bay Area, California, U.S., on October 17, 1989, and caused 63 deaths, nearly 3,800 injuries, and an estimated $6 billion in property damage.
What was the name of the freeway that collapsed in 1989?
He’s worked on bridges and highways around the region to make sure that scenes like those, on that fateful day, are never repeated again. The stretch of roadway that was once the Cypress freeway, is now Mandela Parkway. The freeway has been replaced by a tree-lined park, a reminder of the 42 people who died.
Where was the freeway that collapsed in the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake?
In the days that followed, the stories of survival spread. And one in particular, on a collapsed stretch of Interstate 880 in Oakland, captured the hearts and minds of the Bay Area and the nation. It is one of the most enduring images from the quake — 14 city blocks of the double-decker Cypress Freeway had been damaged or collapsed.
How many people died in the Cypress Freeway collapse?
Dozens of cars and trucks were crushed under concrete. Forty-two people died on the Cypress Freeway and dozens more were injured. Many people were pulled out in the hours after the freeway collapsed.