Three small trucks, a bus, and a scooter fell from a bridge south of Guangzhou, according to authorities. The bus, scooter, and one of the trucks landed inside the empty ship, while the other two vehicles fell into the water.
According to police, one side of the ship collided with a bridge support, and then the bow collided with another pillar, causing a piece of the bridge deck to collapse, which they blamed on “improper crew operation.”
According to state broadcaster CCTV, the collapse of the Lixinsha Bridge cut off water and access to an island home to some 8,000 people, the majority of whom are farmers. Temporary water connections and a ferry service were established for residents.
The bridge spans a river near the mouth of the Pearl River, inland from Hong Kong. According to the World Shipping Council, the area is one of China’s most important manufacturing and transportation hubs, with two of the world’s five busiest ports located there.
The bus and scooter drivers, as well as three persons in the vehicles that fell into the river, were among those killed, according to city officials during a late afternoon news conference. There were no people aboard the bus.
Two additional persons were treated in a hospital for injuries and are in stable condition. A crew member on the ship suffered minor injuries.
As reported by state media, officials dispatched a recovery ship and six scuba divers to the location.
According to Chinese media, authorities have detained the ship’s owner.
China Central Television, the state broadcaster, reports that in 2021 the transport department of Guangdong Province, which has Guangzhou as its capital, decided to put anti-collision devices on the bridge’s support columns. According to the broadcaster, the work that was supposed to be finished in 2022 was delayed to 2023 and then August 2024 without any explanation.
