Highway 8A Bridge East of Bhachau

This is a four-span, two lane reinforced concrete bridge that was under construction at the time of the earthquake. The most significant earthquake damage was bearing failure of the support bent nearest the east abutment and failure of retaining walls ("wing walls") at the east abutment.

Figure 1. View of east abutment showing failed wing wall. Note also poor performance of deck support detail at first bent. (2/14/01 12:11:28, N23.30397 E70.42103).

Figure 2. View along tilted wing wall showing suspended approach slab. Abutment fill settled due to wing wall movement and seismic compression. (2/14/01 12:11:53, N23.30397 E70.42103).

Figure 3. View down on south-east wing wall showing 15-20 cm wall displacement. This displacement is due primarily to a tilt of the 6 m wall of about 1-2 degrees. Soil liquefaction occurred near the base of the wall and may have contributed to the overturning failure. A similar failure occurred on the north-east wing wall, although the displacement was approximately 70 cm over a 5 m wall due to an 11 degree rotation. (2/14/01 18:17:12, N23.30397 E70.42103).