Field measurement results of Tsing Ma suspension Bridge during Typhoon Victor

A Wind and Structural Health Monitoring System (WASHMS) has been installed in the Tsing Ma suspension Bridge in Hong Kong with one of the objectives b eing the verification of analytical processes used in wind-resistant design . On 2 August 1997, Typhoon Victor just crossed over the Bridge and the WAS HMS timely recorded both wind and structural response. The measurement data are analysed in this paper to obtain the mean wind speed, mean wind direct ion, mean wind inclination, turbulence intensity, integral scale, gust fact or, wind spectrum, and the acceleration response and natural frequency of t he Bridge. It is found that some features of wind structure and bridge resp onse are difficult to be considered in the currently used analytical proces s for predicting buffeting response of long suspension bridges, for the Bri dge is surrounded by a complex topography and the wind direction of Typhoon Victor changes during its crossing. It seems to be necessary to improve th e prediction model so that a reasonable comparison can be performed between the measurement and prediction for long suspension bridges in typhoon pron e regions.