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Bridge collapse in central China Chinese bridge collapse kills 22
(about 4 hours later)
A bridge being built in central China has collapsed, killing at least 22 people, the authorities say. At least 22 people have been killed and up to 46 others are still missing after a bridge collapsed while under construction in central China.
The collapse occurred on Monday in Fenghuang county in Hunan province. Forty six people remain missing. The bridge, at a popular Chinese tourist spot in Fenghuang county in Hunan province, had been scheduled to open later this month, reports say.
Reports say the bridge was nearing completion at the time of the collapse. An inquiry into the cause is under way. A total of 123 workers had been on the bridge removing scaffolding at the time, according to Xinhua news agency.
The 320-metre (1,049ft) bridge was being built to span the Jiantuo River. Fenghuang is a hilly area popular with Chinese tourists. China has identified more than 6,000 bridges that are damaged or dangerous.
The BBC's Quentin Somerville, in Shanghai, says more than 100 construction workers are believed to have been on the bridge when it collapsed. The government in Beijing has pledged to fix or rebuild all the damaged bridges in an ambitious plan to make the country's road network safer by 2010, the China Daily newspaper reported on Tuesday.
They were in the process of removing scaffolding supports from the structure, which was supposed to open later this month. Investigation under way
The bridge was to link Fenghuang County with neighbouring Guizhou Airport. Dramatic pictures from the scene showed bulldozers and rescue workers, including about 400 soldiers, searching through a huge pile of rubble.
According to local media sources, most of those working on it were local farmers who had been recruited for the project. "I saw a lot of bodies lying on the road, some of them were construction workers and some were passers-by... blood was everywhere," one witness told Reuters news agency.
Rescue workers, including 400 soldiers, are continuing the search for survivors. China should learn a lesson from the collapse of the Mississippi bridge, and accelerate the inspection of unsafe bridges Xiao RuchengChina's Institute of Bridge and Structural Engineering
"A car was crushed flat under the bridge, it was so ruined that I could not even tell the size of the car," he added.
The 320m (1,049ft) bridge was being built to span the Jiantuo River, connecting the hilly Fenghuang County with neighbouring Guizhou Airport.
Xinhua said the 123 workers had been busy "dismantling steel scaffolding erected during the construction process" when the collapse occurred.
According to local media sources, most of those working on the 12m yuan (US$1.58m) bridge were local farmers who had been recruited for the project.
The cause of the accident is under investigation. The bridge's construction manager and project supervisor have been detained for questioning, Xinhua reported.
The accident comes amid growing concern about the state of China's infrastructure in the country's rush for development.
In its annual report last year, the ministry of communications identified 6,300 bridges across the country that were dangerous because of serious damage to "important structural components", the China Daily reported.
Xiao Rucheng, of the Institute of Bridge and Structural Engineering, was quoted by the paper as saying that many of the newer bridges had been built in haste, and older ones were unable to cope with today's traffic flows.
"China should learn a lesson from the collapse of the Mississippi bridge, and accelerate the inspection of unsafe bridges," he said, referring to the 1 August collapse of a bridge in the US that killed at least nine people.