A truck and a car fell into the river Tarn in southern France Monday after a suspension bridge collapsed, emergency workers said. The body of a 15-year-old girl was recovered, prosecutor Dominique Alzeari told reporters. Four others have been rescued from the river.
The girl's mother was pulled alive from the sunken car by bystanders, some of whom were badly injured in the rescue attempt.
Several other people were feared missing, including the driver of the truck and perhaps the driver of a possible third vehicle involved in the incident.
A car hood could be seen sticking out of the water as helicopters circled overhead and emergency workers in inflatable boats searched for survivors.
The collapsed metal and concrete bridge — built in 1935 and renovated in 2003 — linked the towns of Mirepoix-sur-Tarn and Bessieres, 30 kilometers (18 miles) north of the city of Toulouse.
Weight of truck
A report for the French Senate last year, after 43 people were killed in the collapse of a motorway bridge in Genoa in neighbouring Italy, found that at least 25,000 bridges around France were in poor structural condition.
But the Mirepoix-sur-Tarn bridge had been regularly inspected and had shown no structural issues, according to the mayor, Eric Oget. He told BFMTV that it had been completely renovated in 2003 and was checked regularly by local authorities.
"It's a catastrophic sight, I don't know what to say, I am dumbstruck," he said.
An investigation was underway to establish the weight of the truck and its cargo to determine if it the bridge's weight restriction of 19 tons had been respected, Malazzini said.
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Work begins demolishing collapsed Genoa bridge
Demolition begins
Experts have begun dismantling the remains of the Morandi Bridge in Genoa, six months after its collapse. A 40-meter section of the motorway flyover was due to be cut, lowered and destroyed – an important step with "high symbolic value" for the town, according to Genoa Mayor Marco Bucci.
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Work begins demolishing collapsed Genoa bridge
Cars plunged into void
The 80-meter section of the Morandi Bridge collapsed on August 14 amid torrential downpours and violent storms. At least 35 cars and heavy vehicles are believed to have been on the section when it caved in, causing them to plunge some 45 meters.
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Work begins demolishing collapsed Genoa bridge
Rescuers toiled through the night
Rescue workers scoured the wreckage through the night in hopes of finding more survivors. Alongside firefighters and emergency services, some 1,000 locals volunteered to help with the rescue efforts.
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Work begins demolishing collapsed Genoa bridge
900-ton concrete slab
Thousands of tonnes of steel, concrete and asphalt have already been removed to prepare for the demolition, but the eight-hour operation on Friday will see a 900-ton slab cut and destroyed. Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte and Infrastructure Minister Danilo Toninello have traveled to Genoa to oversee the beginning of the operation.
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Work begins demolishing collapsed Genoa bridge
Renzo Piano replacement
Italy's most famous living architect Renzo Piano, a Genoa native widely known for the Pompidou Center in Paris, has designed the replacement bridge. It will feature 43 streetlamps in memory of the 43 killed in the collapse. At €202 million ($229 million), the bridge will be one of the most expensive in Europe. It is scheduled to open to traffic by April 2020.
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Work begins demolishing collapsed Genoa bridge
'Immense tragedy'
The bridge collapse killed 43 people and injured dozens more. Italy's transport minister Danilo Toninelli described the incident as an "immense tragedy." International leaders, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel and France's Emmanuel Macron, paid tribute to the victims.
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Work begins demolishing collapsed Genoa bridge
Children among those killed
The morning after the collapse, Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini said that three children – aged 8, 12 and 13 — were among those killed.
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Work begins demolishing collapsed Genoa bridge
Italy's busy motorway viaduct
The bridge over the northwestern port city was one of Italy's main viaducts, connecting the A10 motorway towards France and the A7 up to Milan. The incident also took place on the eve of Ferragosto, a major Italian holiday, meaning there was likely more traffic than usual.
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Work begins demolishing collapsed Genoa bridge
Tragedy sparks political fallout
Italy's Giuseppe Conte interrupted his holiday to visit the scene of the collapse. While Conte reserved his words to praise the rescue workers, his ministers started pointing fingers. Transport Minister Toninelli said the company managing Italy's highways would have its contract revoked. However, his 5Star Movement party has been criticized for downplaying the need for infrastructure investments.
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Work begins demolishing collapsed Genoa bridge
Cause of collapse still unknown
While the precise reason behind the disaster is still unknown, investigators believe it could have been caused by lightning, an engineering failure or corrosion. Prosecutors have place 20 people under investigation, as well as the privately-owned highway operator Autostrade per l'Italia. The bridge had been in use for around 50 years, close to the recommended limit.
kw/rt (AFP, dpa)
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