Kolkata Bridge Collapse: Five Feared Dead, Several Trapped Under Debris Of Majerhat Bridge

As the saying goes that history repeats itself, another bridge collapsed in Kolkata, West Bengal, just like the other bridge that collapsed in the city in 2016. A portion of a prominent bridge at Kolkata’s Majerhat collapsed at around 5:30 PM today trapping several people underneath.

According to eyewitness accounts, five people are feared dead but no official confirmation has been given yet. 17 victims have been rushed to the nearby SSKM hospital. Several cars and trucks are also trapped under the collapsed portion of the bridge. Fire brigade, police and NDRF personnel are conducting rescue operations with the help of locals.

The bridge connects Behala to many parts of Kolkata and crosses the arterial Sealdah railway line and runs over the Majerhat railway station. As the bridge collapsed during peak traffic hours, the Budge Budge-Sealdah railway line has been stopped.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said, “Police are investigating the matter, a detailed investigation will be done but right now our main focus is rescue and relief operations,” reported News18.

How ministers reacted

“It was a 40-year-old bridge. As of now there has been no casualty, but search operations are underway, let us wait,” said the Urban Development Minister Firhad Hakim after the collapse.

He further claimed that although rescue operations are underway, nobody is feared trapped under the bridge anymore. He said, “We have called in the cranes, let them pull up the debris, however, as per information, no one else is trapped under the debris.”

Derek O’Brien, the ruling party, Trinamool Congress MP tweeted and termed the collapse as devastating.

Watching scenes of Majerhat bridge #Kolkata collapse . Devastating. Rescue teams, disaster management teams, Police CP,fire fighters already reach spot. Locals join. Rescue operations on.Prayers for those affected. Difficult to gauge enormity of tragedy as yet looking at visuals

— Derek O'Brien (@derekobrienmp) September 4, 2018

Mamata Banerjee, who is on an official tour of North Bengal urged her ministers to immediately reach the spot and help with relief actions. Former Trinamool MP who is now a BJP MP, Mukul Roy blamed Mamata Banerjee for the collapse. He said, “The Bengal govt and Mamata herself is responsible for this bridge collapse. They are saying beautification of city is on, but repair work of old constructions is not on her mind. State govt should take complete responsibility of this collapse.”

The Logical Indian prays for the well-being of the people who are trapped under the bridge and the ones undergoing treatment currently. This is the second bridge collapse in the city in the last two years. In 2016, Vivekanand Bridge, which is near the busy Ganesh Talkies, collapsed, killing 27 people and leaving 80 injured. The ruling party and the opposition started their blame games but the ones who were actually hurt were the citizens. We urge the authorities to conduct a thorough investigation and put better measures in place so that these tragedies do not happen in the future.

Also Read: Kolkata Flyover Collapse: A Timeline Of The Tragedy