Hampi: 18 Workers Injured in Bridge Collapse near Anegundi
Press Trust of India
Bangalore, Jan 22 : 18 people were injured when an under-construction bridge over Tungabhadra river collapsed at Anegondi here on Thursday while rescue workers were trying to find out if any of the labourers were trapped in the debris.
"No one was killed in the mishap. Sixteen persons suffered minor injuries and two others are in a critical condition," Inspector General of Police, Gulbarga Range, K V Gagandeep told PTI. The tragedy occurred at 3.30 pm and more than 40 workers were on the project site, he said.
The workers were engaged in the construction activity when the bridge being built to provide a link from Anegondi to tourist destination Hampi in neighbouring Bellary district collapsed. The injured have been rushed to hospitals in Siruguppa and Koppal, he said.
Divers have been pressed into service and rescuers were also trying to locate whether workers have been trapped under the debris of the collapsed bridge.
The work on the bridge, which was suspended in the wake of opposition from the UNESCO that it would affect the world heritage Hampi, seat of power of the Vijayanagar rulers, resumed only in November last after the state secured clearance.
UNESCO had threatened to drop Hampi from world heritage monument list. Resource crunch also delayed the project that started in 1998.