The balance sheet continues to grow. At least 137 people died in India in the collapse of a suspension bridge, Sunday October 30, in the west of the country. The infrastructure, dating from the British colonial era, had just reopened to the public after months of work. Rescue operations are still in progress on Monday morning, while aan investigation to determine the causes of this tragedy has been opened. Here is what we know about this fatal accident.
What happened ?
233 m long, the pedestrian bridge of the city of Morbi spans the Machchhu river in the State from Gujarat. Sunday evening, approx. “250 to 300 people” were gathered on this bridge to celebrate a religious holiday, according to the first report of the police of the city, quoted by The Indian Express*. CCTV footage shows the structure swaying before suddenly giving way.
“The bridge was full of people”, reports a local resident to AFP. Shortly after dark, “the cables gave way, the bridge collapsed in a fraction of a second. People, first falling on top of each other, fell into the river.” According to the BBC*, dozens of people tried to cling to the bridge. “We helped people who were able to swim to shore but we could not save most of those who fell into the river”a witness told AFP.
What is the balance sheet?
The accident killed at least 137 people, including fifty children, according to the latest report released Monday afternoon by the local police. From Sunday evening, thehe Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, has asked “the urgent mobilization of rescue teams”. Extensive rescue and search operations were launched, involving divers, dozens of soldiers and the coast guard. For now, local authorities, quoted by the BBC, ensure that at least 177 people have been rescued. At least 15 people have been hospitalized.
But the night complicated the holding of relief operations. “The water is stagnant and there is sewage in the river. Visibility was poor so it was difficult to spot the bodies”explained Prasanna Kumar, commander in charge of operations, to the British media.
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The search continues Monday morning, when more bodies were discovered in the rubble of the bridge. “We will search the whole river and leave no room for doubt”, assured Prasanna Kumar. The supply to the river from a downstream dam has also been cut off to reduce the water level and speed up the research.
What about bridge safety?
A team of five investigators was appointed to determine the causes of the bridge collapse. A complaint against X for manslaughter has been filed. According to local media, thehe suspension bridge was built in 1880, the colonial era British, with materials imported from England. Closed in March for seven months of renovation work, it was reopened to the public on Wednesday, but without a security certificate having been issued by the authorities.
“The bridge is owned by the municipality of Morbi, but we entrusted it to the Oreva group a few months ago for maintenance and operation for a period of 15 years”has explained Sandeepsinh Jhala, head of the municipality of Morbi, in the columns of Tea Indian Express*. “The private company opened the bridge to visitors without informing us and as a result we were unable to obtain a security audit of the bridge.”
Accidents involving old and poorly maintained infrastructure are common in India, especially bridges. In 2016, a footbridge broke over a busy street in the eastern city of Calcutta, killing at least 26 people. In 2011, at least 32 people died when a bridge collapsed on which a crowd was celebrating a festival in northeast India, about 30 km from the city of Darjeeling.
* Links marked with an asterisk refer to articles in English.