BEIJING – A railway bridge under construction in northwest China collapsed Friday, killing at least 12 people and leaving four others missing, according to state media. The incident occurred in the early morning hours when a steel cable snapped, causing a large section of the structure to plunge into the Yellow River.The accident took place in Qinghai province, on the under-construction Sichuan-Qinghai Railway. A video released by state broadcaster CCTV captured the moment the central arch section of the bridge gave way and crashed into the water below. At the time of the collapse, 16 workers, including a project manager, were on site.
State news agency Xinhua reported that the cause of the disaster was a steel cable failure during a "tensioning operation." The collapse caused a significant portion of the bridge's steel girder arch to fall. The bridge, which has been hailed as the world's largest-span double-track continuous steel truss arch bridge, is also the first railway bridge of its kind to cross the Yellow River, China's second-longest river.
Rescue efforts were immediately mobilized, with hundreds of emergency responders, including more than 800 personnel, 27 boats, a helicopter, and five robots, deployed to the scene. The search for the four missing workers is ongoing and has been complicated by strong currents and murky water.
The Ministry of Emergency Management has dispatched a team to the site to oversee rescue operations and investigate the cause of the accident. The incident has once again brought to light concerns over safety standards in China's rapidly expanding infrastructure sector, where a number of similar construction accidents have occurred in recent years.
The bridge project was a key component of the Sichuan-Qinghai Railway, which aims to improve connectivity in the region. The collapse has halted construction and cast a shadow over what was considered a major engineering feat for the country.
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