50-year-old bridge collapses in Maharashtra’s Dahanu

Connectivity between Dundhalwadi (which is the epicentre for the recent spate of tremors since November 2018) and Ambesari villages has been lost due to the collision

A 50-year-old bridge built over a rivulet in Dahanu taluka collapsed on Monday evening after heavy rain lashed the area.

Bridge collapses in Maharashtra’s Dahanu. (HT Photo)

As a result, connectivity between Dundhalwadi (which is the epicentre for the recent spate of tremors since November 2018) and Ambesari villages has been lost. Dahanu’s public works department (PWD) said it will temporarily repair the bridge so that motorists can use it for now.

“However, we will have to wait till the end of monsoon to completely repair the bridge. We will also construct a new 50-km tar road,” said Dhananjay Jadhav, PWD engineer, Dahanu.

Until PWD repairs the bridge, residents have to circumvent 25km via the Mumbai-Ahmedabad National Highway 8 to reach the two villages. On Sunday, Dahanu received around 216mm rainfall. “The 3.70-metre-wide and 6-metre-long bridge collapsed as its foundation got weak due to the rains. Fortunately, there was no vehicular traffic on the bridge when it collapsed,” said Aniruddh Patil, resident of Bordi, near Dundhalwadi.

Besides the two villages, residents also use the bridge to reach Umargaon and Sanjan in Gujarat and hence motorists will have to take the NH 8 to reach Gujarat, Mumbai and Dahanu.