Using the Cypress stucture collaspe as a scare tactic is beyond shallow and brings little to the discussion without focusing on the lessons learned and applied after the the event. Every existing highway in CA was examanined for similiar design faults and repaired or retrofitted. To point to the Cypress structure is to point to contruction methods no longer in use for decades. The collaspe provided a tremendous amout of information on how stuctures fail and how to mitigate many of the problems. Rather than chant Cypress stucture, how about a discussion of the major design changes that prevent the rebar on modern structures from splaying out as occurred in the Cypress. (BTW I was on the rescue and recovery management team for about a week following the collaspe.)

Desert Don