Risk Assessment of Florida's Coastal Bridges Exposed to Hurricane-Induced Storm Surge Wave Forces

The purpose and focus of this research was on studying the hazard to Florida's coastal bridges from storm surge induced wave forces inflicted on the bridges during hurricanes. It has been observed in recent years that bridges located in the coastal environment are vulnerable to deck unseating during the applied loading of storm surge wave forces. The goal of the research is to use modern and up-to-date analysis methods to address the risk and vulnerability of coastal bridges to being damaged from storm surges during hurricanes along Florida's coastline. Implementing the current analysis methods will be useful for determining the magnitude of wave parameters and coinciding wave forces imposed on structural elements of a bridge superstructure. It is also the intention of this manuscript to address the need for an analysis of the entire network of Florida's coastal bridges, not just one specific bridge case study. This has been regarded as one of the largest limitations of current analysis in this field of work. This research provides an improved understanding of addressing bridge vulnerability from hurricane hazards on both local and network level as well as providing further insight into preventing and limiting the amount of damage that can occur during the event of a major hurricane making landfall.