 Yarmouth Suspension Bridge

- Was constructed by Gidney Goddard and supervised by Mr Green, a local

surveyor.
- Opened for public use on 23 April 1829.
- Spanned the River Bure at Great Yarmouth, Norfolk.
- The bridge was supported by a suspension chain at both edges of the deck, each
chain being formed from two sets of eyebars.

DESCRIPTION OF STRUCTURES

MATERIALS
- Suspension chain at both edges of the deck, each chain being formed from two
sets of eyebars which had been made by a local blacksmith.
- The 14-foot-9-inch (4.50 m) wide deck, which was slightly arched, carried a
central single carriageway of 6 feet 9 inches (2.06 m) width and two footways
each 4 feet (1.2 m) in width.
TWO SETS OF EYEBAR

The creation of the eyebar provided a simple solution

to lessening the amount of steel needed in a bridge.
Using a pin and eye method less stress would
theoretically be placed on the joining members.

COLLAPSE PHOTOS

VICTIMS REPORTS
The wounded and dead were taken to nearby houses and pubs (including the
Norwich Arms, the Admiral Collingwood and the Swan). The Union House hotel supplied
blankets for the wounded and Lacons Brewery made quantities of hot water available
for hot baths to revive the survivors. Some 75 bodies were recovered on the day of the
accident, though some remained trapped in the wreckage of the bridge – one man was
rescued alive some time later after being freed with the use of a crowbar. In all 79
people were killed in the disaster, of whom 59 were children. Most of the dead were
under 13 years of age and the youngest victim was two years old.
CAUSE OF COLLAPSE
- Spectators crowded the bridge over the River Bure to view a clown travel the in
a barrel. Their position shifted as the barrel passed; the suspension chains
snapped and the bridge deck tipped over.
SUMMARY OF COLLAPSE
- Physical manufacturing defects that significantly reduced the load it was capable
of carrying.
- Incomplete weld
- The quality of the iron, of which the ends were composed, was neither according
to the specification, nor proper for the purpose.
- Failure occurred in a joint within the eyebars – each of which had been forged
from three separate pieces: two eyes and a bar.
- The scarf joint between the components had been imperfectly welded with the
weld covering only one third of the surface area of the joint.
- The design was not well conceived.
- Welding of the eyebars which was described as defective.
ADVANCES
- Regular maintenance inspections of the bridge may have picked up the issue and
one ICE member made the recommendation that public bridges be regularly
inspected by a competent engineer.