Impact of 2008 Hurricane Ike on Bridge Infrastructure in the Houston/Galveston Region

Abstract

The storm surge, wind, and waves produced by Hurricane Ike in 2008 caused notable damage to the transportation infrastructure in the Houston/Galveston region of Texas. This paper presents the lessons learned from damage to bridge infrastructure in the Houston/Galveston region observed after Hurricane Ike, with comparisons to empirical evidence from past hurricane events on common failure modes and design details affecting bridge performance under hurricane-induced loads. A rich set of damage data is developed, drawing upon postevent inspections and reconnaissance data to present details such as bridge type, failure mode, and surge elevation for the 53 damaged bridges. Many of the damaged structures in the region were either constructed of timber or were low-clearance water-crossing bridges, and these bridges were often completely destroyed by the storm surge and wave loading. Scour and debris also hampered the performance of both major structures and rural bridges. The evidence from the performance of these structures highlights the need for new design alternatives or retrofits such as the use of shear keys and restrainer cables, grated decks, or replacement of timber bridges with box-culvert structures, among other solutions.