Death toll in Vietnam bridge collapse rises to 59

Hanoi, Sep 27 (Xinhua) At least 59 people were killed and 186 injured in a bridge collapse in Vietnam's southern Mekong Delta, local newspaper People reported Thursday.

The accident occurred Wednesday morning when a 90 metre section of an approach ramp, which is over 30 metres above the ground and leading to the Can Tho bridge, the longest and most modern one in the delta under construction, fell in Binh Minh district, Vinh Long province.

The death toll is likely to be much higher as many people are still trapped in the cable bridge's ruins, weighing 1,500-2,000 tonnes, according local newspaper Vietnam News.

There were about 150 workers of the contractor TNK comprising three Japanese firms on the cable bridge and another 100 below when it collapsed, the paper quoted Nguyen Hung Khoe, a representative of the sub-contractor, Rinkai, as saying.

The construction of approach ramps and the cable-braced bridge's main span over the Hau River, linking Can Tho City and Vinh Long, began in September 2004 with investment of over 4.8 trillion Vietnamese dong ($302 million) from official development assistance of Japan and the Vietnamese government's reciprocal capital.

The construction of the six-lane bridge with length of nearly 16 km was scheduled to be completed in late 2008.

(c) Indo-Asian News Service

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