Morung Express News
Dimapur | July 11
The ageing bridge over the Chathe River at 4th Mile connecting Dimapur with Niuland ADC sub-division caved in on July 11 claiming at least 4 lives. Beams supporting the single-lane iron girder bridge gave way around 5:00 pm today taking with it at least 5-6 vehicles crossing the bridge at the time.
The deceased victims included a family of 3 – father, mother and son, and a woman. The family of 3 was identified as Jaheda Ali (28 years), Sahil Ali (11 years) and Bakshad Ali (32 years) while the woman was identified as Rohita Devi. All hailed from Tripura and were residing at Nihoto village. They were reportedly in an autorickshaw.
The Deputy Commissioner, Dimapur, Kensonye Yhome while confirming the 4 deaths, added that it could not be ascertained for sure on the number of fatalities “at this stage.” A number of injuries were also reported but the DC said that till 9:00 pm following the collapse of the bridge no person has been reported hospitalised.
Two columns on the east bank (towards Niuland) shifted dislodging the deck of the bridge.
The collapse of the bridge has virtually cut off two administrative blocks - Niuland and Kuhuboto - from Dimapur. In the meantime, the DC informed that connectivity with Niuland will have to be maintained via Seithekiema. He said that vehicular traffic will be diverted through the Patkai-Seithekiema-New Showuba route till a new bridge comes up, while adding that workers were on the job to refurbish the rarely used dirt track.
The bridge, as per official records, was constructed in 1986. Years of neglect and a river below, which swells during the monsoon, has rendered the bridge weak and unsafe for use. But the lack of a proper alternative route has forced commuters to depend on it. The Dimapur district administration had on June 2015 issued a warning on the stability of the bridge while temporarily shutting it off. It was later reopened to use.
A proposal to construct a new RCC-beam bridge was recently approved by the government. The DC informed that the work order for a new bridge was issued about 2 months back but the ground work could not start because of the arrival of the monsoon. The construction firm had also reportedly started work on a temporary overpass, which was washed away.
