China: Ship damages bridge – cars fall into the water
A cargo ship rammed a bridge busy with cars in southern China, causing it to partially collapse. There were several fatalities.
The freighter hit the traffic bridge early Thursday morning (local time) southeast of the metropolis of Guangzhou in Guangdong province, as the local authorities announced on the online platform Weibo.
An unknown number of vehicles fell into the water, the state news agency Xinhua reported.
At least two people died as a result of the accident and three are still missing, local authorities said on the Weibo online platform. One sailor suffered minor injuries.
Bus crashed onto ship
According to preliminary investigations, two vehicles fell into the water and three others fell onto the ship. Footage from the scene of the accident showed a bus that had fallen into the cargo hold of the freighter. According to Chinese media reports, only the driver was on board the bus. The line operator was unable to contact him after the accident. According to the authorities, there was initially no reliable information about the cause of the accident.
Chinese state television showed footage from the scene of the accident, showing the freighter wedged between two bridge pillars. There was a large gap in the two-lane bridge above. The rescue workers who rushed to the scene were supported by divers who searched for the missing people at the scene of the accident.
Freighter hits bridge, cars crash
Near the city of Guangzhou in southern China, a cargo ship rammed a road bridge on Thursday, causing it to partially collapse. Some vehicles fell into the water or onto the ship, Chinese media reported. At least two people were killed.
An empty cargo ship “came into contact” with the pillars of a bridge, causing the road above it to collapse, state broadcaster CCTV reported. The Guangzhou City Maritime Affairs Bureau said the collision caused five vehicles, including a motorcycle, to fall from the bridge into the water or the ship.
As of 10 a.m. (local time, 3 a.m. CET), two people had been rescued and two had died, the Guangzhou office said. Three people are still missing.
Investigations into the cause of the accident
The cargo ship was en route between the cities of Foshan and Guangzhou when it hit the Lixinsha Bridge around 5:30 a.m., CCTV reported. Images distributed by the broadcaster showed rescue personnel in orange jumpsuits racing in inflatable boats towards a high bridge with a gaping hole in the middle. Photos showed a red and white ship that appeared to be wedged diagonally between two bridge piers.
