Home Top Stories Urgent work to clear the collapsed Pirara Bridge – Memorial …
– Government working with Private Sector to empty, move truck
Part of Region Nine’s Pirara Bridge, an important link between Lethem and Annai, has collapsed under heavy truck pressure and according to Public Works Minister Juan Edghill, the Government will carry out emergency works and co-operate with the Private Sector as it trying to clear the bridge.
The Minister said in a statement that the Government will carry out urgent work to get the truck off the collapsed section of the 160-foot bridge, which collapsed on Sunday.
“There are two things we have to do. One, we have to engage with the Private Sector and that has been done, to help empty the truck, so that we can move the truck off the bridge. Because as a result, the traffic is not able to pass. We have fuel tankers and others [vehicles] to enter Lethem. ”
“Building an alternative route at the moment is proving difficult. The water is high and from my current assessment about a third of the bridge is damaged. Therefore, we must get into urgent work immediately. ”
He explained that they were in the process of moving on site to resolve the matter as soon as possible. According to Minister Edghill, the Ministry has grassroots personnel in Region Nine with whom it is in contact.
“I have instructed my chief engineer and he has communicated that to my hinterland engineer and all the others on the ground. Engage and use the resources closest to the website, so we can resolve this as soon as possible. And as far as I know, that is being done. ”
Tips have been issued warning that the Pirara Bridge is structurally at risk since 2019, with motorists being warned to use an alternate route until it is repaired by the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) in Region Nine.
It was only in February this year, when commissioning a bridge in Sussex and Hogg Streets, Georgetown, that Minister Edghill made a case to warn motorists and truckers about the importance of not overloading weighted bridges that the structures are not equipped to handle .
In his remarks at the opening of the bridge, Edghill had urged motorists, especially cargo carriers, to be responsible and adhere to the recommended weight limit on the country’s infrastructure in case of the bridge collapse.
“This bridge was damaged on September 11, 2020… what happened was that a container carrier carrying a ton of container cargo, overturned on this bridge to turn around and break it. Now, this is a community bridge. Not a bridge in a commercial zone, ”Edghill had said.
“It could carry a load of sand, a canter of material to build a home. But having an undoubted operation of a container truck, with a 40-foot container on it, using a community bridge to turn around, is something that has to be addressed in a very public way. “
