On Saturday afternoon, a portion of the two-decade old bridge at Dharavi collapsed, leaving a hole of 60metres in length. A dumper truck and tempo got stuck in the hole.
Move aside, potholes. The latest affliction to hit the monsoon ravaged city is caved-in roads.
On Saturday afternoon, a portion of the two-decade old bridge at Dharavi collapsed, leaving a hole of 60metres in length. A dumper truck and tempo got stuck in the hole.
“It is a culvert bridge, a portion of which collapsed. It was constructed in 1991 by public works department (PWD) and handed over to the BMC in 1993. The bridge was repaired by the BMC and paver block was put on the slope,” said an official from road department.
Fortunately, no casualties were reported in the incident, despite the fact that two vehicles had collapsed on the bridge.
Ashok Bati, driver of the dumper loaded with sand that collapsed on the bridge said, “I was going towards Kandivli and stopped for a signal at the Dharavi ‘T’ junction, when suddenly I noticed that the dumper was sinking. I felt the air pressure of the wheel reducing. And, before I knew it, the whole vehicle got stuck in the pit.”
Dazed and unaware of what was happening, Bati was rescued by public nearby. “It was only after I came out of the truck that I realised that the bridge had collapsed,” Bati said.
“Prima facie, the cause of the collapse may be the sinking of the foundation of wall on which the culvert was resting, which created a wide gap,” said D Jain, assistant municipal commissioner of G-North ward. He added that they were still trying to ascertain the actual cause of the collapse.
There are 59 bridges in the city which have been deemed dangerous. The state appointed panel has recommended urgent repairs of these bridges, a warning that was ignored by the BMC.
The Statutory Technical Advisory Committee (STAC) had also instructed the BMC to carry out a detailed structural investigation of bridges tagged dangerous.
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