Failures

Tunnel Collapse Caught on Video

According to the site Geotechpedia, this tunnel failure occurred on November 29, 2016 around 9am (local time?). The tunnel is located in Yusufeli district of Erzurum in northeastern Turkey. It is somehow related to the […]

Pinkerton Tunnel
Press Releases

Historic Pennsylvania Tunnel Reopens with Help From NCFI’s TerraThane Polyurethane Foam

Pinkerton TunnelMOUNT AIRY, NC—A $2 million tunnel construction project on the Great Alleghany Passage (GAP) is reopened to the public with help from a geotechnical polyurethane foam called TerraThane, by US company, NCFI Polyurethanes.

The GAP rail-trail is 150 miles of hiking and biking between Cumberland, Md, and Pittsburgh, Pa. created along the former railway line. In Cumberland, the GAP joins the C&O Canal Towpath, creating a continuous 335-mile long trail experience all the way to Washington, DC. It’s become a favorite biking destination for people from around the Mid-Atlantic states. One of its main tunnels, the Pinkerton Tunnel, an 849-foot former Western Maryland Railway tunnel, has been closed since 1975 due to erosion and unstable conditions. The Allegheny Trail Alliance, the organization that built and now maintains the 150-mile GAP, and the Somerset County Rails-to-Trails Association (SCRTA), wanted the tunnel reopened and helped fund the project.

[Editor] Click through for the rest of the press release from GeoPrac sponsor, NCFI Polyurethanes (makers of TerraThane). [/Editor]

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Braced excavation for Stockholm's City Line project
Project Related

Golder Innovates for Subway Line in Stockholm

Golder was the geotechnical designer for two of the most challenging segments of the Stockholm City Line in Sweden. Their work included foundation improvements for a tunnel beneath a historic portion of Stockholm, 3D modeling […]

Project Related

Feb. 7 Bertha update: Two factors contributed to tunnel stoppage

WSDOT released an update on February 7 with some conclusions regarding the blockage that has stopped the Alaska Way Viaduct Tunnel Boring Machine, Bertha’s progress since December 6. Now they don’t think it was necessarily the well casing after all.

They cite two factors that contributed to the blockage. First, the cutterhead was clogged with material. You can see an cool short video of a worker unclogging the cutterhead. Not terribly dramatic, but still cool. The second factor was increased temperatures inside the equipment. STP discovered damage to a seal that protects the machine’s main bearing. They are still determining how the repairs will be done.

If you want to follow the chronology of this issue, read below for summaries and links to previous updates from WSDOT. And Check out the videos too! [Source: WSDOT]

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