Enugu moves to mitigate effects of collapsed bridge in Isi-Uzo

Following the collapse of a bridge across Ebonyi River in Isi-Uzo local government area of Enugu state, the state government announced yesterday that it is taking urgent steps to ensure speedy completion of a new bridge already billed to replace the collapsed one.

State Commissioner for Works, Engr. Patrick Ikpenwa who inspected the site of the collapse yesterday explained that it was in view of the week state of the bridge that the state government had commenced the construction of a new one to replace it.

He said work on the new one has gone quite far and that at the moment the bridge abutment is already in place and that the abutment is the first and last support of a bridge.

According to him, pillars have been constructed and this means that piling has been done already; adding that what now remains is launching the beam and bridge desks which are the last stages.

Commenting on the collapse of the old bridge, he noted that the bridge would have endured until the completion of the new one but for the overloaded truck that carried some 900 bags of cement that plied it.

By the fall of the bridge hanging across Ebonyi River, many communities in Enugu, Ebonyi among others have been cut off, but with the quick intervention of the Enugu state government there is “no cause for alarm” as people will soon go about their normal businesses.