Why did the roof of the Hartford Civic Center collapse?
On January 18, 1978, the Civic Center roof collapsed six hours after the University of Connecticut defeated the University of Massachusetts, 56-49. It collapsed into the arena below with a prolonged rumble at 4:19 a.m. The roof collapse was attributed to the weight of accumulated snow and ice from a 10-day storm.
When did the Hartford Civic Center roof cave in?
On January 17, 1978, a Tuesday evening, 4,746 basketball fans watched the UConn men’s team upset UMass 56-49 at the Hartford Civic Center. About six hours later, in the early morning of January 18, the roof of the sports coliseum collapsed onto 10,000 empty stadium seats.
What caused the space frame in the Hartford Civic Center to collapse in 1978?
This roof was noted for being one of the first large-span roofs made possible by computer design and analysis, and was modeled as a space truss using a trusted program. The roof of this three-year-old structure collapsed at 4:15 AM on January 18, 1978 during a freezing rainstorm after a period of snow.
What year did the Hartford Civic Center open?
January 9, 1975XL Center / Opened
ARENA HISTORY The doors to the Hartford Civic Center Veterans Memorial Coliseum and Exhibition Center opened on January 9, 1975, with Glen Campbell kicking off the start of an event-filled weekend.
When did Kemper Arena roof collapse?
June 4, 1979
On June 4, 1979, at 6:45 p.m., a major storm with 70 mph (110 km/h) winds and heavy rains caused a portion of Kemper Arena’s roof to collapse. Since the Arena was not in use at the time, no one was injured.
What stadium does roof collapse?
the Metrodome
12, 2010 when the Metrodome collapsed in Minneapolis before the Vikings-Giants game. Little did the Vikings know the events that would unfold just around the corner. Just after 5 a.m. on a game day, the Metrodome’s roof collapsed under the immense weight of snow and ice built up on its billowy surface.
Who owns the Hartford Civic Center?
City of Hartford
It consists of two facilities: the Veterans Memorial Coliseum and the Exhibition Center….XL Center.
| Owner | City of Hartford |
| Operator | Global Spectrum |
| Capacity | Concerts: 16,500 Basketball: 15,600 Ice hockey: 14,750 (9,801 with curtain system) |
| Surface | 200 ft × 85 ft (61 m × 26 m) (hockey) |
| Construction |
|---|
How many people died in the Kemper Arena?
A total of 114 were killed and 216 injured, 29 of whom were rescued from the rubble.
How did the Kemper Arena fail?
The collapse was triggered by fracture of the high strength bolts, part of the hanger that suspended the roof from the space frames. Analysis demonstrated that failure of just one of four bolts per hanger resulted in a large prying load on the three remaining bolts.
What happened to the Vikings stadium?
The Vikings laid their stadium to rest in April 2014 after it was demolished for their new stadium. The team played its final home game in the Metrodome on December 29, 2013, defeating the Detroit Lions 14-13. Removal of the stadium’s seats began the next day.
Where did the Vikings play when the dome collapsed?
Groundbreaking for U.S. Bank Stadium occurred on Dec. 3, 2013, and the Metrodome hosted its final Vikings game 26 days later.
What happened to the roof of the Hartford Civic Center?
At approximately 4:15 a.m. on January 17, 1978, the roof of the Hartford Civic Center Arena collapsed. Only six hours earlier, five thousand people had been in the arena watching a basketball game. The arena roof was a 90 by 110-meter space frame (Levy and Salvadori, 1992, Kaminetzky, 1991, Feld and Carper,1997).
Who is the architect of the Hartford Civic Center?
In 1970 Vincent Kling agreed to be the architect for the Hartford civic center. Shortly thereafter he hired Fraoli, Blum, and Yesselman, Engineers (F, B,&Y) to design the arena. In order to save money, F, B,&Y proposed an innovative design for the 300 by 360 ft. space frame roof over the arena.
What made the roof of the Civic Center unique?
The roof of the Civic Center embodied this optimism. Designed and tested with a complex computer program, the unique structure consisted of unusual pyramidal trusses and was supported by just four columns in order to provide an unobstructed view for every spectator.