Engineering disasters

In order to meet society’s demands, the creation of newer technology and infrastructure must be met efficiently and cost-effectively.

Several factors contribute to failure including a flawed design, improper use, financial costs, and miscommunication.

Learning from past engineering failures and infamous disasters such as the Challenger explosion brings the sense of reality to what can happen when appropriate safety precautions are not taken.

When larger projects such as infrastructures and airplanes fail, multiple people can be affected which leads to an engineering disaster.

[13] In-depth observations and post-disaster analysis have been documented to a large extent to help prevent similar disasters from occurring.

Modern analyses blame failure of an angle block lug, thrust stress and low temperatures.

A 2016 hydraulic analysis confirmed that changes made to the dam severely reduced its ability to withstand major storms.

It failed in 1928 due to a defective soil foundation and design flaws, triggering a flood that claimed the lives of at least 431 people.

On July 17, 1981, two overhead walkways loaded with partygoers at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Kansas City, Missouri, collapsed.

Levees and floodwalls protecting New Orleans, Louisiana, and its suburbs failed in 50 locations on August 29, 2005, following the passage of Hurricane Katrina, killing 1,577 people.

Four major investigations all concurred that the primary cause of the flooding was inadequate design and construction by the Army Corps of Engineers.

On June 24, 2021, at 1:22 a.m., Champlain Towers South, a 12-story beachfront condominium in the Miami suburb of Surfside, Florida, partially collapsed killing ninety-eight people.

Disintegration of the vehicle began after an O-ring seal in its right solid rocket booster (SRB) failed at liftoff.

While re-entering Earth's atmosphere over Louisiana and Texas, the shuttle unexpectedly disintegrated, resulting in the deaths of all seven astronauts on board.

The cause was damage to thermal shielding tiles from impact with a falling piece of foam insulation from an external tank during the January 16 launch.

On the night of April 26, 1865, the passenger steamboat Sultana exploded on the Mississippi River seven miles (11 km) north of Memphis, Tennessee.

Flaws in the design of the submersible and the carbon fibre pressure hull in particular were discussed as a possible cause of the implosion, with Titan's operator OceanGate having ignored multiple previous warnings about the potential for accidents.