Punki
Apr 5, 01, 11:22 am
I work just south of downtown Seattle and live just North, so for the past 30+ years it has been a common event for me to jump onto Quiet Lion's private freeway (a/k/a/ The Viaduct) several times a day traveling to and from those important destinations in my life--work, home, airport, Nordstrom.
This is a double deck highway structure that looks almost as old as I, built partially on fill, and running right along the water, Pioneer Square, the Kingdome (a/k/a/ Safeco Field)--basically right through our "Earthquake Sensitive Zone".
There have been many occasions, while speeding along The Viaduct, that I have had the fleeting thought, "Gee I wonder what it would be like to be here in an earthquake?" (Trust me, I don't really want to know.)
There must have been others who had also had that fleeting thought as well, because the viaduct was closed immediately following our last rumble for some pretty serious inspections.
http://www.komotv.com/news/story.asp?ID=9541
While the road passed its first physical in early March, earlier this week problems developed with bits of steel and concrete dropping on people passing below.
http://192.251.219.162/local/viaduct02.shtml
Now, Joe, being the clever fellow that he is, quickly developed bacterial pneumonia so he could stay in bed all week and avoid this entire traffic boondoggle, but I bravely pushed forward and faced the traumas of commuting through Seattle with one major through highway closed down.
The traffic has been brutal and magnified by the scheduling of Mariner Baseball games nearly every evening. YIKES! Can you imagine how deliously happy I was when they announced the reopeing of two lanes each way on the Viaduct?
Yahoo! I jumped on the road that led me to the Viaduct, delighted that my commute would return to something closer to my normal 12 minutes each way. But not so fast here, 2 lanes move much more slowly than 4 and, sure enough, traffic managed to grind to a complete standstill with me at a dead stop, staring right into the cracked pillar only half reinforced, and an adjacent building leaning precariously into its own shorings.
I don't know how long I sat there contemplating the lack of stability of the ground beneath me (way beneath me), but it seemed like this little trip, which usually takes 5 minutes, took hours, maybe even days. When will the BIG ONE happen?
I think I have to stop watching the news. I wonder if I could land a helicopter in my back yard?
[This message has been edited by Punki (edited 04-05-2001).]
This is a double deck highway structure that looks almost as old as I, built partially on fill, and running right along the water, Pioneer Square, the Kingdome (a/k/a/ Safeco Field)--basically right through our "Earthquake Sensitive Zone".
There have been many occasions, while speeding along The Viaduct, that I have had the fleeting thought, "Gee I wonder what it would be like to be here in an earthquake?" (Trust me, I don't really want to know.)
There must have been others who had also had that fleeting thought as well, because the viaduct was closed immediately following our last rumble for some pretty serious inspections.
http://www.komotv.com/news/story.asp?ID=9541
While the road passed its first physical in early March, earlier this week problems developed with bits of steel and concrete dropping on people passing below.
http://192.251.219.162/local/viaduct02.shtml
Now, Joe, being the clever fellow that he is, quickly developed bacterial pneumonia so he could stay in bed all week and avoid this entire traffic boondoggle, but I bravely pushed forward and faced the traumas of commuting through Seattle with one major through highway closed down.
The traffic has been brutal and magnified by the scheduling of Mariner Baseball games nearly every evening. YIKES! Can you imagine how deliously happy I was when they announced the reopeing of two lanes each way on the Viaduct?
Yahoo! I jumped on the road that led me to the Viaduct, delighted that my commute would return to something closer to my normal 12 minutes each way. But not so fast here, 2 lanes move much more slowly than 4 and, sure enough, traffic managed to grind to a complete standstill with me at a dead stop, staring right into the cracked pillar only half reinforced, and an adjacent building leaning precariously into its own shorings.
I don't know how long I sat there contemplating the lack of stability of the ground beneath me (way beneath me), but it seemed like this little trip, which usually takes 5 minutes, took hours, maybe even days. When will the BIG ONE happen?
I think I have to stop watching the news. I wonder if I could land a helicopter in my back yard?
[This message has been edited by Punki (edited 04-05-2001).]