Can Tho bridge collapses, dozens of people die 17:03' 26/09/2007 (GMT+7)
VietNamNet Bridge – A suspension bridge crossing the Hau River in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho, which was being built, suddenly collapsed this morning, September 26, killing dozens of engineers and workers.
Manh Hung, leader of construction team No.7, said: “This morning, when we were working, we suddenly heard a great explosion at a bridge-head. Dust covered a great air space while workers screamed out. The scene was so terrible. The whole great block of concrete fell on people below.”
The collapsed concrete girder crossing pillars No. 13, 14, 15 totalling 87m in length and 24m in width was poured yesterday. The incident occurred while around 250-260 workers of three Japanese contractors, Taisei, Kazima, and Nipponsteel, were working on the girder.
The initial reason for the collapse, according to local police, was that the 30m-heigh scaffolding system which was supporting the above girder was weak and collapsed, causing the concrete to fall.
Nguyen Quoc Vu, leader of the first-aid team at Vinh Long Hospital, said that as of 1pm this afternoon, 108 victims had been pulled out from the collapsed concrete block, many of whom were dead. All of the victims are male. Many people are still in the pile of concrete.
“We couldn’t directly go in to take victims out. The bridge project management board’s reaction is slow. We must do more quickly otherwise the remaining victims may die after 24 hours because of suffocation and exhaustion,” he said.
Survivors have been taken to Can Tho General Hospital and some district hospitals of Vinh Long province which are near to the incident site.
According to Can Tho General Hospital, of 40 hospitalised victims, around ten have died. At the Military Hospital 121, 25 others have died. The 30/4 Hospital in Can Tho City has received 17 victims, two of whom have died.
This morning nearly 1,000 local people went to the Can Tho Hematology Centre to donate their blood to save victims of the bridge collapse. The centre’s director Nguyen Ngoc Huynh said that it had received around 700 units of blood of various types.
“We had to refuse 300 blood donors because the volume of blood collected from other donors at local hospitals is enough. Around 2,000 people have registered for blood donation. This is the first accident that we have had to collect such a great volume of blood,” Mr. Huynh said.
This bridge is 16km in length, with the longest span of 550m. The construction of the bridge commenced in September 2004 and is scheduled to be completed in 2008. This is the longest and most modern bridge in the Mekong Delta with total investment capital of VND4,832 billion. The whole capital is official development assistance (ODA) capital of Japan, which is disbursed via the Japan Cooperation Bank.
Minister of Construction Ho Nghia Dung this morning sent an urgent report to the government about the collapse of Can Tho bridge and he flew to Can Tho this noon.
Nguyen Van Cong, Transport Ministry Office Manager, said that the ministry would focus on dealing with the consequences of the accident. Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai instructed the Transport Ministry to urgently work with the Departments of Transport of Can Tho and Vinh Long provinces to solve the consequences of the accident.
The Transport Ministry has set up a board to solve the consequences of the accident led by Deputy Minister Ngo Thinh Duc.
According to Nguyen Ngoc Long, Head of the Quality Examination and Management of Transport Work Agency, the incident happened because of loose supervision of contractors.
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