ILOILO – The approach of Ulian Bridge in Barangay Tinocuan, Dueñas town collapsed on Monday, making the bridge temporarily impassable to big trucks.
The collapse was due to a 10-wheeler truck loaded with some 30 tons of cement around 5:30 a.m.
The weight of the truck may have been too much for the approach, said Engineer Sanny “Boy” Oropel, district engineer, Iloilo 2nd District Engineering Office – Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
Further, said Oropel, the bridge is undergoing widening.
“It so happened that the contractor nag-excavate sang iya footing. Kag dugangan pa nga may severe scouring because sang flooding sang Holy Week bangod kay Bagyo Agaton,” he told Panay News.
Following the collapse, trucks and buses were prohibited from passing through the bridge. Only light vehicles were being allowed such as motorcycles, tricycles, four-wheeled private vehicles, vans and six-wheeler trucks with maximum capacity of 5,000 kilograms net weight.
Trucks and buses were told to take the alternative route of Calinog going to Passi City and vice versa.
“We are doing overtime work to open the Ulian Bridge sa two-lane traffic, all types of vehicles,” said Oropel.
Ulian Bridge is 95 meters long./PN
