(COLOMBO, LANKAPUVATH) –The death toll in a major bridge collapse reached 38 in Italy and could rise further on Wednesday as rescue teams searched the vast concrete debris for any survivors.
A 50-metre section of the Morandi bridge – part of a toll highway and one of the main arteries into the port city of Genoa – collapsed at about 12pm local time on Tuesday, taking down with it about 35 cars and three trucks that had been crossing at the time.
Huge slabs of reinforced concrete plunged onto two warehouses, train tracks and a riverbed
“We’re currently at 38 confirmed deaths and some people missing,” said Interior Minister Matteo Salvini.
Three people were missing and about a dozen remained hospitalised in serious condition, authorities said.
According to Italy’s civil protection department, about 1,000 police, firefighters and volunteers were deployed to the scene.
The head of Genoa’s public prosecutor’s office, Francesco Cozzi, said he was ready to “open a file for negligent multiple homicide and disaster”, and it would be against unknown persons “because the reasons for the tragedy are still unknown”.
