My people, make we yarn wetin dey happen for our bridges matter! Naija researcher, Osazee Oravbiere, don shout say we need better system to check our bridges sharp sharp, or else we dey put our lives for danger!
Oravbiere, dis man no dey joke, talk am clear say we no get any national database wey go fit help us track how our bridges dey behave. Imagine say we no fit see problems wey dey happen for our bridges until e don reach crisis level? Na wetin dem dey call ‘waiting until it don spoil’!
As he talk for interview wey he give to The PUNCH, na only by monitoring our bridges every day we go fit detect any wahala before e turn serious matter. “If we no track wetin we get, how we go fit protect am?” He dey shake head, as e dey beg our policymakers make dem put eye for dis matter. Money wey dem fit use to invest for smart monitoring go turn better for our lives and our infrastructures.
This man don come up with one beta software wey e dey call digital “health portfolios”. This one go gather sensor readings, traffic loads, and all di inspection records wey go make maintenance easier and no go dey reactive like say we dey respond to wahala wey don already happen.
Oravbiere don run am for US before. He lead big bridge-monitoring campaign wey use vibration sensor networks to catch early signs of problem. Him don even show American engineers di beta approach at di 2024 World Bridge Engineering Conference! Dis man no just dey follow trend, him dey publish everything wey e research for Infrastructures journal in 2025!
You fit imagine say these sensors dey capture di strain and motion wey dey happen for di bridge in real-time, e go fit allow engineer dem know when everything dey okay and when something don start dey go wrong before we even see cracks for dem bridges. Na wetin we dey call proactiveness!
Wetin we suppose learn as Naija people be say, if we wan avoid disaster for our bridges and road networks, make we no shy away from technology. E never too late to start! Make we put pressure on our government to do di right thing, or we go dey hear stories wey no go sweet at all.
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