Johanna Simon Featured in Informed Infrastructure

When a slope failure beneath the runway at West Virginia International Yeager Airport disrupted operations and put lives and infrastructure at risk, the response required thoughtful engineering and long-term planning. Johanna Simon, PE, a senior engineer and instrumentation specialist at Schnabel Engineering, contributed to a recent article to Informed Infrastructure detailing the airport’s history, the 2015 slope failure, and the complex reconstruction efforts that followed — including the design of a massive retaining wall, use of geofoam fill, and integration of real-time instrumentation for ongoing monitoring.

Her insights highlight the importance of combining geotechnical design with purposeful monitoring to support resilience and safety at critical infrastructure sites.

Read the full story to learn more about this unique project and the lessons it offers for infrastructure risk management.
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