Villagers suffer as part of bridge collapse snaps road link

Part of a bridge on Korail-Hilora-Adabari road in Mohera Union Parishad under Mirzapur upazila of Tangail has collapsed, snapping road communication in the area and causing suffering to the villagers.

A part of the guide wall and approach road of the bridge collapsed on October 14, locals said.

As a result, the movement of vehicles has remained suspended on the bridge. People, however, were moving on the damaged bridge on foot taking risks.

Several villagers said that the bridge was constructed on Korail-Hilora-Adabari road about two decades ago for draining out floodwater from the crop fields in the area during the monsoon.

However, floodwater washed away the soil beneath the bridge during the last year's prolonged flood, they said.

The villagers also said that several thousand people of 10 to 12 local villages and several hundred vehicles ply on the bridge every day. 

They alleged that although the bridge turned risky a year ago, the authorities concerned did not take any step to protect the bridge. Finally, it collapsed and the commuters have been suffering to go to their destinations, they said.

Jahangir Hossain of Adabari village said the authorities should have taken steps to protect the bridge after it turned risky during the last year's flood. Now, people are suffering due to their negligence, he said.

Badsa Miah, chairman of Mohera Union Parishad, said he had raised the issue at the meeting of the Upazila Parishad stating that the bridge would collapse if necessary steps were not taken immediately.

"However, it was not repaired despite assurance from the authorities to do so," he said. "Now we demand that a new bridge be constructed in place of the damaged bridge as soon as possible," he added.

Meanwhile, the engineers of the Local Government and Engineering Department (LGED) have already visited the damaged bridge couple of days ago and set up cautionary signboards at the two ends to avoid accidents.

Rafiqul Islam Bhuiyan, a sub-assistant engineer of LGED in Mirzapur, said they had sent a proposal to the higher authorities to reform the bridge after it turned risky during the last year's flood. "After the collapse of a part of the bridge several days ago, we have sent another proposal in this regard," he said.

Mir Enayet Hossain Montu, chairman of Mirzapur Upazila Parishad, said that a new bridge would be constructed in place of the damaged bridge as early as possible.