The death toll from the collapsed bridge in central China's Hunan Province has risen to 64 as rescuers
found more bodies on Saturday.
The rescue headquarters said Saturday that about 152 workers were
working when the bridge collapsed on Monday afternoon, among whom
64 were killed, 22 injured and the others escaped unhurt.
However, a source with the rescue headquarters said final
figures of the dead and missing would be announced after the rescue
work was completely over.
The source said it was not easy to get the number of workers who
were working on Monday afternoon, as they belonged to seven
construction teams and some of them were casual laborers.
The headquarters interviewed project managers, labor contractors
and families of the workers before reaching an initial estimate
that 152 workers were working when the bridge collapsed.
The 22 injured workers have received "careful and good" medical
treatment, the source added.
Rescuers said the search for the victims were made easier after
demolition experts detonated explosives at 2:28 a.m. Friday to
demolish the three collapsed concrete piers, where more bodies are
believed to be buried.
They say the chances of anyone surviving in the debris are
minimal.
The huge piers were too heavy to be moved and had hindered the
search.
Before the explosion, experts and rescuers had searched the
rubble with detection equipment, but found no signs of life.
The 328-meter-long, 42-meter-high bridge over the Tuojiang River
in Fenghuang County in western Hunan Province started construction
in March 2004 and had been scheduled to open to traffic at the end
of the month.
An investigation into the causes of the accident is still
underway.
China has suspended the building of all unreinforced arch
bridges throughout the country as of Saturday, following the deadly
bridge collapse in Hunan.
Minister of Communications Li Shenglin announced the order on
Friday, demanding all provincial transportation departments to
organize special teams to examine every unreinforced arch bridge,
and construction work will not be allowed to resume before the
bridges are confirmed safe.
(Xinhua News Agency August 19, 2007)
