On May 25th, a massive rainstorm hit Dahu County, Hubei Province, causing a partial collapse of a bridge in Chenwan Village of Yangping Town. A white private car was stranded on the collapsed section of the bridge, with hazard lights flashing, before the collapse widened, leading to the car plunging into the river and being swept away by the raging currents.
According to a report from Xinjing News on May 26th, authorities from Yangping Town Government have responded to the scene for handling the situation. The occupants of the vehicle had already exited the car due to a malfunction and there were no casualties. The time for restoration of traffic on the bridge is yet to be determined.
The incident drew significant attention from netizens and quickly became a hot topic on Weibo. Video blogger and Weibo influencer “Fuge Xuanwu” posted, “Life or death in 3 minutes! On May 25th, Dahu County in Xiaogan, Hubei, Yangping Town faced a severe rainstorm with over 250mm of rainfall in just 12 hours, causing flash floods that destroyed a rural bridge.
“At the time of the incident, a white car suddenly broke down on the bridge and couldn’t reverse. The driver noticed the bridge shaking violently and cracking, prompting them to quickly evacuate with their family. Only 3 minutes after the evacuation, a large section of the bridge collapsed, and the car was swept away by the rushing water, disappearing in an instant.
“Fortunately, all occupants of the car evacuated safely beforehand. Emergency control and rescue efforts were promptly initiated locally, and as of the 26th, there were no casualties reported, while the submerged car is still being searched for. With extreme weather conditions, the risk of old bridges increases significantly, so caution is crucial when traveling!”
Some netizens shared screenshots of the incident and raised questions like, “Didn’t anyone notice how thin the bridge deck was?” “Was this bridge made of tofu mixed with cement?” “It’s like the bridge and the car were a perfect match for a disaster.”
The chairman of the Chain Industry Development Manager Club, “Huo Xiaobing,” questioned in a post, “The partial collapse of a bridge in Hubei without casualties occurred because the occupants of the car had already left. Did the designer of this bridge consider what could cause it to collapse during the initial design phase? Did the relevant authorities contemplate this issue?”