The New Hotness

Spotted on a walk along the Mighty Wappingers Creek after a storm with plenty of gusty winds:

The tangle of branches and logs came from a tree that fell across the road from the far right side and put that crease into the guide rail. The vertical stump seems unrelated to that incident.

A bit of rummaging at the base of one post produced a victim:

The impact produced enough force to turn the rail brackets into guillotine metal shears against the posts:

It’s not a clean shear cut, which isn’t surprising under the circumstances.

An ordinary ½-13 Grade 8 bolt has a 17 k pound proof load: popping that bolt required a mighty oomf.

Memo to Self: stay indoors during windy storms!