Galloping Gertie

E310786

Galloping Gertie was the nickname of the original 1940 Tacoma Narrows Bridge, famous for its dramatic oscillations and catastrophic collapse due to aeroelastic instability.

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All labels observed (1)

Label Occurrences
Galloping Gertie canonical 2

Statements (48)

Predicate Object
instanceOf collapsed bridge
nickname
suspension bridge
carried State Route 16
surface form: State Route 16 (predecessor)
casualtiesAnimal one dog
casualtiesHuman none
category Bridge failures
Bridges in Washington State
Suspension bridges in the United States
collapseCause aeroelastic flutter
aeroelastic instability
collapsedOn 1940-11-07
constructionCompletedIn 1940
crosses Puget Sound
Tacoma Narrows
designedBy Leon Moisseiff
designType suspension bridge with plate girders
documentedIn famous collapse film footage
engineeringLesson importance of aerodynamic stability in long-span bridges
failureMode torsional flutter
hadToll yes
hasHeritage remains used as artificial reef
hasNicknameFor Tacoma Narrows Bridge
surface form: Tacoma Narrows Bridge (1940)
inspired research in aeroelasticity
revisions to bridge design codes
lengthApprox 1810 meters
locatedIn Tacoma Narrows
United States of America
surface form: United States

Washington
surface form: Washington State
locatedNear Gig Harbor
surface form: Gig Harbor, Washington

Tacoma, Washington
mainSpanLengthApprox 853 meters
material concrete
steel
notableFor catastrophic structural failure
dramatic torsional oscillations
influence on bridge engineering and aerodynamics
officialName Tacoma Narrows Bridge
openedOn 1940-07-01
operatedBy Washington Toll Bridge Authority
ownedBy Washington State, United States
surface form: State of Washington
partOf Tacoma Narrows
surface form: Tacoma Narrows Bridge system
replacedBy Tacoma Narrows Bridge
surface form: 1950 Tacoma Narrows Bridge
spanType main suspension span
status destroyed
usedFor road traffic
wasOneOf longest suspension bridges in the world at time of completion
windSpeedAtCollapseApprox 64 km/h

Referenced by (2)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Tacoma Narrows Bridge alsoKnownAs Galloping Gertie
subject surface form: 1940 Tacoma Narrows Bridge
Tacoma Narrows originalBridgeNickname Galloping Gertie