Fierce hill torrent sweeps away steel bridge with four people

The incident occurred in the South Sannasivita Nayapara area under Baghber Union of the upazila. The bridge, built over the Chellakhali River, was constructed using special funds allocated by the then Member of Parliament for internal communication in the locality.

It is learnt that heavy rainfall in Meghalaya, India, triggered a hill torrent in the Chellakhali River from Monday morning, with an intense current flowing down from the hills of Meghalaya. The floodwater, flowing 324 centimetres above the danger level, overflowed embankments in various areas and breached them in some places, inundating the surrounding lowlands. By Monday afternoon, the fierce current of the torrent had reached the underside of the bridge. At one point, the force of the water caused the bridge to bend with a loud noise from the middle and submerge before the eyes of many onlookers.

At the time, four people, including a child, were crossing the bridge. As the structure slowly sank into the water, those on board, including the child, managed to swim ashore while floating with the current. A bystander on the riverbank recorded the entire incident on a mobile phone, and the video went viral within moments.

A similar steel bridge built at the same location had also been destroyed and swept away by floodwaters a few years ago. The current bridge, reconstructed around 2020, was locally known as 'Mayer Bridge' (Mother's Bridge). As this was the only means of crossing for the residents living on the western bank of the river in the South Sannasivita Nayapara Village of Baghber Union, its loss has left students, farmers and all other members of the community in severe hardship.