Italian rescuers worked into the night Tuesday to try to find anyone who might still be alive under the wreckage of a collapsed highway bridge in Genoa.
A large section of the Morandi Bridge fell during a violent storm earlier in the day, apparently without warning. Authorities said more than 30 vehicles dropped when the bridge collapsed, with some falling 45 meters (almost 150 feet).
Huge pieces of concrete and steel dropped onto warehouses in an industrial park under the bridge.
At least 26 people were killed, with some reports putting the death toll as high as 35. According to authorities, all of the deaths involved drivers on the bridge, and no one standing near it was killed.
A fire official said seven people were pulled out of the rubble alive.
Witnesses reported an “apocalyptic scene.” Television images showed a truck that stopped just short of the portion that collapsed, with its tires against a pile of rubble.
The bridge connected two major highways between Italy and France. It was opened in 1967 and made engineers uneasy in recent years because of what they said had been its gradual deterioration.
The bridge underwent renovation in 2016, and more work was scheduled.
Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini said Tuesday’s disaster showed Italy has to spend more on its infrastructure, even if it means breaking European Union budget rules.
“We should ask ourselves whether respecting these limits is more important than the safety of Italian citizens. Obviously for me, it’s not,” he said.
Salvini also publicly demanded the names of those he said might be responsible for the disaster.
“They will have to pay — pay for everything, and pay a lot,” he said. | voanews
