A section of the Riverwalk caved in today (11/5). I didn't find out till nighttime, so I haven't been down there to check it out yet -- will go first thing in the morning -- but the Columbus Ledger Enquirer says, "A 45-foot chunk of the Chattahoochee RiverWalk, exposed to shifting river currents amid the construction of a whitewater rafting course, caved in this afternoon."
For purposes of not very scientific documentation, I'll offer these several photographs. Here's one from pre-whitewater construction, back last year:
You who are regular readers of this blog know that I've long had a fascination with this machinery that I call "the stomach," located within the Eagle and Phenix Powerhouse.
Now here are several photos of the same piece of machinery, a few weeks ago, after the whitewater construction was begun and the water diverted through the Powerhouse:
While the whitewater course is being constructed, every single drop of the River's flow has been diverted away from the dam and through the Powerhouse and its "stomach."
Scarey, huh? I couldn't stand there very long without being freaked out (and without getting me and my camera wet).
Then, I was out of town for two weeks and came back to this:
The stomach has busted open! Or, more likely, it's undergone some surgery so that it might be able to accommodate all that water.
Here's another view to show you how much water has lately been diverted directly toward the section of the Riverwalk that caved in today (Photo taken a few days before the cave-in):
Morning after cave-in:
The area is cordoned off so that I can't get close enough to get a photo of the cave-in itself -- but the Ledger-Enquirer article posted above has a good shot of it.
I'm no engineer, but it seems a little strange to me that somebody didn't anticipate this.
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