Terrifying moment bridge splits in half plunging cars into river killing five

22 February 2024 , 14:54

1314     0

Terrifying moment bridge splits in half plunging cars into river killing five

Terrifying footage shows the aftermath of a ship crashing into a bridge, breaking it in half and plunging terrified drivers into the water below.

The incident, which took place in Guangdong, a province in southern China, on February 22, killed five people. The ship was reportedly crossing the Pearl River Delta at 5:30am local time when it struck one of the bridge's supporting columns.

It caused a huge chunk of the bridge to tear off and fall, dragging along five vehicles, two of which fell into the water and three onto the empty ship. And dramatic video footage shows the vessel involved in the accident floating in the water under the destroyed bridge.

There are fears that the death toll may rise as three people are still missing. Four vehicles and an electric motorbike fell off the bridge. Two vehicles, which included a bus, plunged into the water and three other vehicles ended up on the barge, according to the local maritime search and rescue centre. The bus was carrying only its driver.

Shocking pictures show the ship stuck under the broken bridge. Debris and vehicles that fell from the bridge onto the ship can also be seen. One dramatic photo shows the bridge split in two, with the part that used to connect the two halves now underneath. Police boats were spotted at the scene of the accident.

Severed penis discovered lying on the ground outside petrol station car park

Images show the barge and the damaged section of the bridge

The ship's captain has been taken into custody and people living nearby have been moved to safety, according to local news reports. The company that owns the ship said it is helping with the police investigation. More than 100 emergency workers, including six divers, and about 15 boats and salvage vessels were involved in the rescue.

Photos show the ship, which didn't seem to be carrying any cargo, being towed away after the accident. The bridge was known to need fixing, as the Chinese TV channel CCTV said. The people in charge in Guangdong said back in October 2021 that the bridge needed "collision avoidance facilities" to stop accidents.

If it had been fixed, the bridge would have been safer. Authorities wanted to finish the work by September 2022, but had to change the date twice - with it originally moved to August 2023 before being pushed back again to August of this year

The place where this all happened is Nansha, right at the bottom of Guangzhou City. It's a port that's getting busier really fast in the south of China. Guangzhou is busy port for ships, and it's important for travel and business.

Charlie Jones