Editing Structural engineering (section)

===Structural failure===
{{Main|Structural failure|List of structural failures and collapses}}

The history of structural engineering contains many collapses and failures.  Sometimes this is due to obvious negligence, as in the case of the [[2008 Pétion-ville school collapse|Pétion-Ville school collapse]], in which Rev. Fortin Augustin ''" constructed the building all by himself, saying he didn't need an engineer as he had good knowledge of construction"'' following a partial collapse of the three-story schoolhouse that sent neighbors fleeing. The final collapse killed 94 people, mostly children.

In other cases [[crash testing|structural failures]] require careful study, and the results of these inquiries have resulted in improved practices and a greater understanding of the science of structural engineering.  Some such studies are the result of [[forensic engineering]] investigations where the original engineer seems to have done everything in accordance with the state of the profession and acceptable practice yet a failure still eventuated.  A famous case of structural knowledge and practice being advanced in this manner can be found in a series of failures involving [[box girders]] which collapsed in Australia during the 1970s.