Te Rata Bridge facts for kids
The Te Rata Bridge was a special type of bridge called a suspension bridge. It crossed the Retaruke River in a place called the King Country in New Zealand. On March 22, 1994, a sad accident happened. Two important parts of the bridge, called transoms (these are strong beams that hold up the bridge deck), suddenly broke. The bridge collapsed while a beekeeper named Kenneth Richards was driving his truck across it. Mr. Richards died when his truck fell 30 meters (about 100 feet) into the river below.
History of the Bridge
Building the Bridge
The Te Rata Bridge was built in 1986. It was made for Keith and Margaret Berryman, who owned land nearby. Members of the New Zealand Army and some army trainees from Fiji built it as a training exercise.
An army officer named Lieutenant John Armstrong designed the bridge. The New Zealand Army paid for the workers and the equipment. The Berrymans were supposed to provide all the building materials. The plans said to use strong wood like macrocarpa or treated radiata pine for the main beams.
However, the Berrymans used Douglas fir wood instead. This wood came from an old building in Wanganui. Lieutenant Armstrong was worried because this wood was not as strong. He didn't want to build the bridge with it. But Mr. Berryman signed a paper saying he would be responsible for the materials. He also promised to check and look after the bridge. So, the army agreed to build it.
Douglas fir wood that isn't treated can rot easily. This has caused problems in New Zealand, like the "leaky homes" issue. Wood needs to be protected from moisture to last. The area around Te Rata gets a lot of rain, about 1800 millimeters (72 inches) each year. The river gorge is often damp and foggy.
Why the Bridge Collapsed
A retired civil engineer named G. W. Butcher looked into why the bridge fell down. He reported that the wood beams had become much weaker. This was "entirely due to decay of the untreated timber." The wood had rotted because it wasn't treated to stop decay.
Mr. Butcher also noted other problems. The bridge used two smaller beams bolted together for the transoms. The original plan was for one solid, stronger beam. Also, there was no regular checking or fixing of the bridge by its owners.
The army did not share Mr. Butcher's report at the official investigation into Mr. Richards' death in 1997. The report was kept secret until the Berrymans' lawyer, Rob Moodie, shared it online. The Berrymans said that trying to clear their names after the accident caused them to lose their farm.
Later, the army released the report. George Butcher then spoke publicly. He said that Keith Berryman had told him the transoms were in bad shape. Mr. Berryman had seen rot in some of the wood and was worried about the bridge.
Timeline of Te Rata Bridges
The Berryman Bridge was not the first bridge at Te Rata. An older suspension bridge was there before it. This first bridge, sometimes called the Hayes Bridge, collapsed around the 1980s.
- 1915–1916: The first bridge, the "Hayes Bridge," was built. It was said to be 100 feet above the water. It was built by the Tichner brothers, who used to be sailors.
- 1986: The second bridge (the Berryman Bridge) was built.
- 1994: The second bridge collapsed.
- 1997: An official investigation was held into the collapse.
- May 2008: A court ruled that parts of the 1997 investigation that said the Army was not at fault were wrong.
- June 2008: The Berrymans asked for money from the Defence Force in court.
- September 25, 2008: The Court of Appeal decided the Berrymans could have their claim heard.
- December 24, 2009: The Berrymans accepted a payment of $150,000 from the Government.
