Patna, Jan 16 (IANS): An iron bridge in Bihar's Darbhanga district collapsed on Monday due to an overloaded truck, officials said.

The incident occurred at Sabohar Ghat under Kusheshwar Asthan block in Darbhanga. The bridge, over the Kamla Balan river, connected Darbhanga with Madhubani, Saharsa, and Samastipur districts.

With the sand-laden truck reached the middle of the bridge, it collapsed and the truck fell into the river. The truck driver and helper managed to jump into the river and save their lives.

Following the incident, the local officials reached the spot and operations were launched to extract the truck.

Local residents were furious with the officials and the contractors who had constructed the bridge, the only connecting districts in the region. The residents of 10 village panchayats are directly affected by the bridge collapse.

The Bihar government is constructing a parallel bridge at the same place but it is not completed yet.