April 21, 2000
"WORST CASE SCENARIO, I DON'T KNOW IF WE WOULD TEAR THE WHOLE BUILDING DOWN, BUT WE'D CERTAINLY HAVE TO LOOK AT IT."
Is the Salt Lake Organizing Committee facing a potential nightmare?
How much is it going to cost to fix the collapsed roof at the Olympic Speed Skating Oval?
That's a question on the minds of many right now.
A question that may have a hefty price tag attatched to it.
News Specialist John Daley has details.
Teams of engineers and architects are making a painstaking review of the building.
They've virtually eliminated some possible causes, and are focusing on others--ranging from design problems to bad bolts.
At the Olympic speed skating oval, they've got an Olympic-sized puzzle on their hands.
Somewhere in the mess of tons of twisted metal and cracked concrete lies the answer.
Why did the 300 foot crossbeam and the two towers and cables that hold it aloft come crashing down?
Eleven others, nearly identical to it, seem to be just fine.
Del Swensen, a building inspector with Salt Lake County, says a group of bolts are still the prime suspects.
Del Swensen/SL Co. Building Inspector: "WE DON'T KONW IF IT WAS CAUSED BY BOLTS THAT WERE SUBSTANDARD, OR TORQUED TOO MUCH, OR WELDED WRONG AND DAMAGED THAT WAY."
The breaking point appears to be a concrete footing for the anchor tower on the southwest corner of the building.
For some reason eight foot-long bolts buried deep into the concrete sheered off, snapping at the point where a nut is tightened down onto the concrete.
Layton Construction has roughly 40 engineers and architects investigating--checking every detail.
Alan Layton/Layton Construction: "THE LOAD WAS GREATER THAN WHAT THE STEEL WAS DESIGNED TO CARRY. IT'S LIKE PULLING A PIECE OF RED ROPE LICORCE. YOU JUST PULL IT AND IT BREAKS."
A spokesman for Layton says they've virtually ruled out an earthquake or a weather-related cause.
So now they're considering whether there was a construction-related or design-related cause.
Also, what if the bolts or some other building materials, don't meet specifications?
Bolts like that are used in 24 other places.
Worst-case scenario, part or all of the building must be torn down and rebuilt.
Del Swensen/SL Co. Building Inspector: "YEAH, WE'D HAVE TO LOOK AT TEARING THEM OUT OR REINFORCING THEM IN ANOTHER WAY."
Looking ahead, it could be very expensive to fix this problem.
If they've got serious trouble here, this repair job could cost millions more than the $27 million they're already spending on this venue.
