Bay Bridge Still Broken

"'The combination of the weight of the traffic and the force of the wind exceeded the capacity of this temporary repair.'

In an earthquake, the kind of beam that cracked could 'completely fracture,' he [UC Berkeley civil engineering professor Abolhassan Astaneh-Asl] said. 'As soon as that one member fractures, the entire bridge collapses.'

He said the bridge should be shut down for a few days until all relevant beams can be inspected for hairline cracks with X-ray equipment."