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The Charles De Gaulle Airoprt Collapse

By: Arianna Khenayzir

The Collapse

The Incident

The morning of May 23, 2004, 4 people were killed in the Charles De Gaulle Airport in Paris, France. The futuristic looking terminal 2E, which was recently inaugurated, collapsed for no apparent reason. The building of this terminal cost $922.5 million and had all been lost after this incident. This collapse caused people to wonder why the structure randomly failed.

Why the terminal collapsed?

Cause

There is no singular reason why the terminal collapsed, but the final report lays out a multitude of reasons why the structure failed:

  • A lack of redundant support meaning the bulding was not statically stable
  • Poorly spaced reinforced steel
  • Weak outer shell struts
  • Weak concrete support beams
  • A low resilience to temperature
  • Many of these were a result of attempting to stay under budget while still creating a beautiful and unique architectural design

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NSPE Code of Ethics

Violations

The Code of Ethics for Engineers was violated in section 2 paragraph 1 because "If engineers’ judgment is overruled under circumstances that endanger life or property, they shall notify their employer or client and such other authority as may be appropriate." This code was violated as the engineers knew the materials used were not the best for the project but had to fit it into the budget which endagered the people and untimately killed 4 and injured 7.

Building and Design Codes

Building codes

French codes were violated in the building of the Charles De Gaulle airport because the safety measures were not accurate for a new building. The concrete vaulted roof violated codes as it was not solid enough to support. No codes or regulations were changed as a result of this collapse, but engineers and architects were expected to use materials which were safer and more reliable to be used.

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Influencing Future Designs

Effects

The Charles De Gaulle Terminal collapse has influenced designs since then by proving to the creators that they must work with materials which are suitable for the conditions. It has also shown many that calculations must be completely accurate or a tragic accident like the collapse could potentially occur at an even larger scale .

Legal Consequences

A French court found the airport operators guilty of involuntary manslaughter. This resulted in the Aeroports de Paris ordered to pay a max fine of $254,000. 3 different subcontractors were required to pay up to $150,000, including the construction, engineering, and inspection firms.

Consequences

Impacts

Impact

As a result of the collapse, the architect which designed the bulding, Paul Andreu, was seen as an excessively prideful man. The unique design which ultimately did not work out resulted in these comments from the public. In the end, society was not really effected as the collapse seemed to be a minor accident which could easily be fixed even though there were lives lost.

References

https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/23-engineering-disasters-of-all-time

https://www.thelocal.fr/20190313/paris-airport-operator-fined-over-fatal-2004-terminal-collapse/

https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/international/2004/06/01/42767.htm

https://simpleflying.com/paris-cdg-airport-2004-terminal-2e-collapse/

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/paris-airport-collapse-blamed-on-design-483590.html

References

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