Melancong ke New York 7: Brooklyn Bridge

Sambung lagi sesi Melancong ke New York.

Khas untuk engineers dan architects yang appreciate the wonders of technical beauty.

Introducing - The Brooklyn Bridge.

Banyak accolades yang jambatan ni menang (tapi takde la trophy):

The Brooklyn Bridge is one of the oldest suspension bridges in the United States. Completed in 1883, it connects the New York City boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn by spanning the East River. With a main span of 1,595.5 feet (486.3 m), it was the longest suspension bridge in the world from its opening until 1903, and the first steel-wire suspension bridge.

 Pebende suspension bridge tu you asked?

A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck (the load-bearing portion) is hung below suspension cables on vertical suspenders.

Kat Malaysia pun ada. Tuuu... Jambatan Pulau Pinang. Sama prinsipal le tu.

 Sekarang, jadi monumen NY. Memang patut pun. Binaan lebih seratus tahun tapi masih mantap. Cuma kita tak tanya la nak maintain camana tu? Part ni la engineers dok sibuk selak blueprint dan buat calculations.

Originally referred to as the New York and Brooklyn Bridge and as the East River Bridge, it was dubbed the Brooklyn Bridge in a January 25, 1867 letter to the editor of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, and formally so named by the city government in 1915. Since its opening, it has become an iconic part of the New York skyline. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1964 and a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1972.

 Sape bina? The Brooklyn Bridge was initially designed by German immigrant John Augustus Roebling dan dah banyak yang dia design.

Tapi malang tak berbau. While conducting surveys for the bridge project, Roebling sustained a crush injury to his foot when a ferry pinned it against a piling. After amputation of his crushed toes he developed a tetanus infection which left him incapacitated and soon resulted in his death, not long after he had placed his 32-year-old son Washington Roebling in charge of the project.

 Macam ada badi pulak. Anak dia pun lumpuh kena penyakit akibat dari decompression sickness disebabkan oleh caissons (In geotechnical engineering, a caisson is a retaining, watertight structure used, for example, to work on the foundations of a bridge pier, for the construction of a concrete dam, or for the repair of ships. These are constructed such that the water can be pumped out, keeping the working environment dry.)

 Lepas tu sape ganti? Bini dia wehhh hahah...


His wife Emily Warren Roebling stepped in and provided the critical written link between her husband and the engineers on site. Under her husband's guidance, Emily had studied higher mathematics, the calculations of catenary curves, the strengths of materials, bridge specifications, and the intricacies of cable construction. She spent the next 11 years assisting Washington Roebling helping to supervise the bridge's construction.

 The Brooklyn Bridge was completed thirteen years later and was opened for use on May 24, 1883. The opening ceremony was attended by several thousand people and many ships were present in the East Bay for the occasion. President Chester A. Arthur and New York Mayor Franklin Edson crossed the bridge to celebratory cannon fire and were greeted by Brooklyn Mayor Seth Low when they reached the Brooklyn-side tower.

Kira sambutan besar-besaran tu.

 Apa hasilnya pembinaan jambatan ini? Banyak...

On that first day, a total of 1,800 vehicles and 150,300 people crossed what was then the only land passage between Manhattan and Brooklyn. Emily Warren Roebling was the first to cross the bridge. The bridge's main span over the East River is 1,595 feet 6 inches (486.3 m). The bridge cost $15.5 million to build and approximately 27 people died during its construction.

 Termasuklah tragedi.

One week after the opening, on May 30, 1883, a rumor that the Bridge was going to collapse caused a stampede, which crushed and killed at least twelve people.

Jadi nak mengembalikan konfiden pengguna, depa buat sesuatu yang genius!

On May 17, 1884, P. T. Barnum helped to squelch doubts about the bridge's stability—while publicizing his famous circus—when one of his most famous attractions, Jumbo, led a parade of 21 elephants over the Brooklyn Bridge.

Kalau dah gajah pun lintas - apa lagi yang tak konfiden?

 Event yang berlaku di atas jambatan ni cukup banyak.

First jumper
The first person to jump from the bridge was Robert Emmet Odlum, brother of women's rights activist Charlotte Odlum Smith, on May 19, 1885. He struck the water at an angle and died shortly thereafter from internal injuries (kerja gila namanya tapi ramai yang suka buat kerja gila ni pun).

 Bungee jump (korang boleh le try)
On June 1993, following 13 reconnoiters inside the metal structure, and with the help of a mountain guide, Thierry Devaux performed (illegally) eight acrobatic bungee jumps above the East River close to the Brooklyn pier, in the early morning. He used an electric winch between each acrobatic figure.

1994 Brooklyn Bridge shooting
On March 1, 1994, Lebanese-born Rashid Baz opened fire on a van carrying members of the Chabad-Lubavitch Orthodox Jewish Movement, striking 16-year-old student Ari Halberstam and three others traveling on the bridge. Halberstam died five days later from his wounds. Baz was apparently acting out of revenge for the Hebron massacre of 29 Muslims by Baruch Goldstein that had taken place days earlier on February 25, 1994. Baz was convicted of murder and sentenced to a 141-year prison term. After initially classifying the murder as one committed out of road rage, the Justice Department reclassified the case in 2000 as a terrorist attack. The entrance ramp to the bridge on the Manhattan side was named the Ari Halberstam Memorial Ramp in memory of the victim.

Saya rekemen baca buku Robert Fisk, The Great War for Civilisation: The Conquest of the Middle East untuk memahami sampai tahap mana hate-love relationship antara Arab-Jew ni.

It has been shown in films such as Once Upon A Time In America, Captive Women, The Fifth Element, Deep Impact, Godzilla, Aftershock: Earthquake in New York, I Am Legend, Life After People, Cloverfield, Zombi 2, Oliver & Company, Enchanted and Kate & Leopold.

OK... NEXT!