The collapse of the bridge in Studénka was supposedly not caused by wooden supports

Ostrava - The wooden blocks that the police identified as one of the causes of the railway disaster in Studénka are a common part of bridge construction and did not cause the collapse of the bridge structure in Studénka. This is stated by the director of the Klokner Institute of the Czech Technical University in Prague, Tomáš Klečka. The investigator of the accident, Jiří Jícha, refused to comment on Klečka's assessment, stating that it is a declaration from the expert institute hired by the construction company Bögl & Krýsl, whose two engineers are being prosecuted due to the disaster.
A week ago at a press conference, Jícha stated that the wooden pads on the construction site should not have been there; he considers their existence in the structure as one of the main pieces of evidence against the company Bögl & Krýsl. "I have seen a lot, but not this," he said a week ago. According to him, even judicial experts were surprised, as they are looking for the specific cause of the tragedy. "The experts were shaking their heads in disbelief," said the investigator.
However, Klečka disagrees; his institute is listed among expert institutes. According to him, the use of wooden elements in bridge construction is common. Wooden pads are also used for temporary support of bridge bearings. "Wood with its properties protects structures from damage at the points of support and can protect coatings. Both functions were performed by the wood during the repair of the bridge in Studénka," he claims. He added that while the used wooden pads do not create a good impression, they in no way reduce the reliability of the bridge during sliding.
He noted that soft spruce wood has a relatively low modulus of elasticity, which leads to the compression of thin pads by several millimeters when supporting the bridge. Such shaped pads have higher friction than metal pads, better fill small irregularities, and adapt to the shape of the bridge structure. "They thus effectively serve as solid support. For these reasons, it is clear that the wooden pads alone did not reduce the reliability of the sliding bridge and were not the cause of its collapse," he explained.
One of the engineers accused due to the tragedy argued in the same way. "The wood reduced friction. It could not have caused the bridge's collapse. When I read that the experts were horrified, I am horrified too," he said.
The accident occurred on August 8. The international express Comenius traveling from Poland to Prague collided at high speed with the remnants of the collapsed bridge. Six people died on site, and two more passengers died later in the hospital. Seventy passengers from the Czech Republic, Poland, and Ukraine were injured. The damage is estimated at around 180 million crowns.