Specialty Geotechnical Contractor DBM was excavating a drilled shaft for the I-5 interchange in Ridgefield, Washington when they dug up something unusual at a depth of 30-ft. At first the WSDOT inspector thought it looked like wood, but then called in a WSDOT archaeologist who took the fragments to University of Washington’s Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture. The tusk is believed to belong to a Columbian Mammoth and date to approximately 13,000 to 15,000 years ago. Story and image from The Columbian.
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Rockfall Protection Installation Video
Geovert, a specialty design-build geotechnical contractor in New Zealand and Australia has released a video showing the construction of a challenging rockfall protection project. From their YouTube description:
Stockton Coal Mine is situated on the rugged west coast of New Zealand’s South Island, near Westport. Geovert, a design-build contractor specializing in difficult access rockfall mitigation projects, were retained to provide a turnkey solution combining slope protection and stabilisation measures, to manage the rockfall hazard and protect the surrounding environment with a world class design build rockfall protection solution. The barrier was 1.7 kilometres long and follows a ridgeline escarpment, making this the longest rockfall protection barrier in the southern hemisphere. This was one of the largest and most challenging rockfall construction projects completed to date anywhere in the world.
Click through to see the video.
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Columbus Era Aztec Emperor’s Tomb Found with GPR
Archaeologists beleive that they may have found the tomb of Aztec emperor Ahuizotl (ah-WEE-zoh-tuhl). Using ground-penetrating radar, they have detected underground chambers that could contain the remains of Ahuizotl, who ruled the Aztecs when Columbus landed in the New World.
This find would not have been possible were it not for strong earthquake in 1985 that severely damaged a Colonial Spanish building. Buildings of this type were built a top the Aztec ruins and are considered too valuable to remove for excavations. Apparently, before this find, no Aztec emperor’s tomb had ever been found at this location despite writings describing an Aztec ceremonial center because Spanish conquerors constructed over the site. Read on for the full story link. (Photo by Grabthar)