FROM THE ROAD.
Unsafe bridge gets blown up in Germany, photos
Over the weekend, a motorway bridge in the Rahmede Valley in North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany was blown up. It was certainly no ordinary explosion. According to Michael Schneider, the bomb technician, the Rahmede viaduct was the highest bridge ever blown up in Germany, after the Rinsdorf viaduct, which was blown up in 2022.
The bridge weighed an impressive 17,000 tonnes, was 70 metres high and over 400 metres long. Although it was still standing, this viaduct had not been used since the end of 2021 due to its poor condition, which did not guarantee its safety.
The citizens of the village near the viaduct all gathered to watch the demolition of the bridge. German sources report that a house nearby was also damaged by the force of the explosion.
Unsafe bridge gets blown up in Germany, photos
Over the past weekend, a motorway bridge in the Rahmede Valley in North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany was blown up. It was certainly no ordinary explosion. According to Michael Schneider, the bomb technician, the Rahmede viaduct was the highest bridge ever blown up in Germany, after the Rinsdorf viaduct, which was blown up in 2022.
Unsafe bridge gets blown up in Germany, photos
The bridge was the second highest ever blasted in the German country. In fact, this viaduct, on the A45 motorway, was a good 70 metres high, more than 400 metres long and weighed 17,000 tonnes. In addition, the slope of the terrain posed a huge challenge for the chief bomb-maker, Michael Schneider.
Unsafe bridge gets blown up in Germany, photos
This bridge, built between 1965 and 1968, had not been accessible since 2021 due to its poor condition. As much as 150 kg of explosives were used for its demolition.
Unsafe bridge gets blown up in Germany, photos
Although the demolition of the Rahmedetal bridge was successful, there was damage to a nearby residential house. The roof was damaged and partially covered by the shock wave, reports wa.de. According to the report, work has already started to repair the damage. The house is still habitable, but it is not yet clear whether the owners will have to be accommodated elsewhere for the time being.
Unsafe bridge gets blown up in Germany, photos
Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing was pleased with the demolition of the Rahmedetal Bridge. "It is an impressive experience. You can see that the masses have come this far. You felt the shock wave, but it is also impressive how precisely the demolition was carried out. I am happy for the population, this is a message of hope. It was a milestone, now we can move forward,' said the FDP politician. This refers to the construction of the new bridge planned for the coming years.
Unsafe bridge gets blown up in Germany, photos
The first thing to be done now is to remove the scrap metal from the old bridge. This will almost certainly take until mid-June. Only then can the construction of the new bridge begin. Very importantly, about 90 per cent of the bridge scrap will be recycled. The concrete will be further processed and the steel will be melted down. "Everything is part of the cycle," says Michael Neumann, A45 project manager at Autobahn GmbH.
Unsafe bridge gets blown up in Germany, photos
The demolition procedure was very precise and impeccably executed. The bridge was demolished at 12 noon, but as early as 9.30 a.m. workers with dogs searched the area to make sure it was clear. Thermal drones were also deployed. Meanwhile, public viewing of the event began in the city centre of Lüdenscheid. Many sound signals were broadcast in the minutes leading up to the demolition, including the sound of a mock explosion to scare off the birds still perched there.
Dangerous bridge gets blown up in Germany, photos
Plans for the construction of the new bridge, which will take the place of the one that has just been demolished, are already underway. Most likely, the new construction will also have a new name and, according to Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing in an interview with WDR, the citizens of the region themselves, who have suffered severe inconveniences since the former bridge was closed, may have the opportunity to choose it.
From the Road
18/06/2024
Prisons are one of the sad institutions on which, unfortunately, modern society is based. Removing individuals who are dangerous to the community, and enclosing them all together in one place for the purpose of surveillance and re-education, is one of the ways our ancestors found to ensure the safety of the population.
They remain places, albeit atrocious, that are nonetheless fascinating because of the peculiarity of their rules, the micro-world they inhabit, and also because of the many fictional works, films, books and many others, that have prisons as their main setting.
But which are the most famous prisons in the world? Among the largest, the most luxurious and the bloodiest, one can really find all possible and imaginable types.
Natural Events
08/06/2024
A meteorite crater (also called astroblem, impact crater or basin) is a circular-shaped depression formed by the impact of a meteorite, asteroid, and in general a celestial body, on the surface of a planet.
Evidence of many of these craters, which have impacted our planet over geological eras, can be found on planet Earth. One of the most famous, for example, is the one believed to have caused the extinction of the dinosaurs (called the Cretaceous-Paleogene mass extinction).
Some of these craters can be found underground today, or at least the traces they left behind. Others have become beautiful lakes, others are still desolate and remote places today. But which are the largest in the world by diameter?
Home page
07/06/2024
We are all realising that our way of life, the one our parents, who were born and raised especially after the Second World War, taught us, is no longer sustainable. There are too many of us in this world now, and nature can no longer provide us with everything we need.
Capitalism, or consumerism for short, is forcing us to submit to environmentally worn-out logics that would not be sustainable even in the long run, but are even less so in the short time we have left before everything falls apart. Our way of life must change radically if we are to allow the survival of mankind. For example, the introduction of the law in Europe allowing the sale of insect meal aims at exactly that, at sustainability.
Therefore, it is necessary for all of us, while there is still time, to change certain behaviours to help the world. Here, then, are some tips for leading a greener and more sustainable life.
From the Road
06/06/2024
According to theMain Streets Across the World 2022report, which analyzes the main shopping areas of 92 cities around the world, New York Fifth Avenue is the most expensive route in the world followed by Hong Kong's Tsim Sha Tsui. Post pandemic, the most expensive street in Hong Kong loses the top of the ranking and records the worst drop ever, -41%.
In detail, with an average annual fee of 14,547 euros per square meter, the Via Montenapoleone in Milan ranks ahead of New Bond Street in London and Avenue des Champs Élysées in Paris, respectively in fourth and fifth place in the global ranking of the most expensive streets in the world.
Via Montenapoleone in Milan, has earned the title of the most expensive shopping street in Europe and the third overall worldwide, with a jump of two positions compared to the last research of 2019.