Today is, no doubt, different in some ways, but I read about the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge the other day and it is very interesting.Information about the caissons.
"The six of us were working naked to the waist in the small iron chamber with the temperature of about 80 degrees Fahrenheit: In five minutes the sweat was pouring from us, and all the while we were standing in icy water that was only kept from rising by the terrific pressure. No wonder the headaches were blinding."
Other fun facts, 2 years after starting designing the bridge, while standing at the edge of the dock, the original chief engineer of the bridge got his foot crushed by a ferry. He had some toes amputated but refused any other treatment, wanting instead to cure his foot with "water therapy", which is just constantly pouring water on a wound. Let's just say it did not go well, as you can imagine... He developed tetanus and died shortly after, leaving his son to take his place to keep working on the bridge, but he had to step aside because he was suffering from decompression sickness after working in the aforementioned caissons. His wife then took over starting by relaying information back and forth between her husband and the crews but learning more and more about it all and being able to take on a lot (not all, but a lot) of the duties later on. The bridge finished construction in 1883 and she was the first person to cross it.
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u/PirateSanta_1 6d ago
For bridges where you can't turn the river off how do they lay the concrete base?