The L'Ambiance Plaza collapse was one of the worst disasters in modern
Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
history. L'Ambiance Plaza was a 16-story residential project under construction in
Bridgeport, Connecticut
Bridgeport is the List of municipalities in Connecticut, most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the List of cities by population in New England, fifth-most populous ...
, at the corner of Washington Avenue and Coleman Street. Its partially erect frame completely collapsed on April 23, 1987, killing 28 construction workers.
Failure was possibly due to high concrete stresses on the floor slabs by the placement process resulting in cracking, ending in a type of punch-through failure.
Several observers suggested the collapse was preventable and highlighted the deficiencies of the
lift slab construction
Lift slab construction (also called the Youtz-Slick Method) is a method of constructing concrete buildings by casting the floor or roof slab on top of the previous slab and then raising (jacking) the slab up with hydraulic jacks. This method of co ...
technique. This collapse prompted a major nationwide federal investigation into lift slab construction as well as a temporary moratorium on its use in Connecticut.
In November 1988, less than two years after the disaster, a $41 million
settlement
Settlement may refer to:
*Human settlement, a community where people live
*Settlement (structural), the distortion or disruption of parts of a building
*Closing (real estate), the final step in executing a real estate transaction
*Settlement (fina ...
of all legal claims arising from a disaster was achieved through mediation, avoiding years of potential litigation. Two judges –
Robert C. Zampano of
U.S. District Court
The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district, which each cover one U.S. state or, in some cases, a portion of a state. Each district cou ...
and Frank S. Meadow of
Connecticut Superior Court
The Connecticut Superior Court is the state trial court of general jurisdiction. It hears all matters other than those of original jurisdiction of the Probate Court, and hears appeals from the Probate Court. The Superior Court has 13 judicial distr ...
— mediated the dispute "through informal conferences among nearly 100 lawyers representing the victims' families and 40 contractors and subcontractors".
[Sam Howe Verhovek]
Pact Reached In Collapse of Building
''New York Times'' (November 16, 1988).
See also
*
Catastrophic failure
A catastrophic failure is a sudden and total failure from which recovery is impossible. Catastrophic failures often lead to cascading systems failure. The term is most commonly used for structural failures, but has often been extended to many oth ...
*
Progressive collapse
Progressive collapse is the process where a primary structural element fails, resulting in the failure of adjoining structural elements, which in turn causes further structural failure.
Progressive collapses may be accidental, as the result of d ...
*
Structural failure
Structural integrity and failure is an aspect of engineering that deals with the ability of a structure to support a designed structural load (weight, force, etc.) without breaking and includes the study of past structural failures in order to ...
References
External links
*
1987 disasters in the United States
1987 in Connecticut
Buildings and structures in Bridgeport, Connecticut
Building collapses in the United States
Disasters in Connecticut
Construction accidents in the United States
History of Bridgeport, Connecticut
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