Bridge Collapse Incidents Leave 30 Dead In Just 1 Year, Maharashtra Govt Just Counting Numbers

On March 14, Maharashtra witnessed yet another footover bridge collapse. At least six people reportedly died and 36 were severely injured when a foot over bridge near the city¡¯s railway nerve centre, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT), collapsed during the evening peak hour rush.

In the past 18 months, this is the third incident to take place in Mumbai and 30 lives has been claimed.

After the Prabhadevi stampede (formerly Elphinstone) in September 2017, a structural audit of all the footover bridges was done and the CSMT bridge was marked ¡°safe¡± by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).

A total of 296 bridges were inspected and 18 of those marked ¡°unsafe¡± were to be demolished.

BCCL

The stampede at Prabhadevi railway station led to 22 deaths and left 39 injured. The trigger of the accident was miscommunication when a flower vendor said "phool gir gaya¡± (flowers fell) and people misunderstood him saying ¡°pul gir gaya¡± (bridge has collapsed).

The Prabhadevi structure, just six feet wide, was used by 10 million during peak hours every day. The Indian Army was later called in to construct a new bridge.

TOI

Soon after in July 2018, a 40-year-old bridge at the Andheri railway station in western suburbs collapsed due to heavy rains. A bigger crisis was averted as no trains were passing under it at that time.

Incidentally, the bridge built in 1971 had passed the audit test.

Mumbai, the world¡¯s second most populous city is also one of the most densely populated. Annual monsoon, flooding lead to building collapses and expose the leaks in routine checks of infrastructure.