Catastrophic bridge failure in China's Jiangsu province claims five lives

A deadly collapse at a major bridge construction site in eastern China’s Jiangsu province has claimed the lives of five workers, after rescuers recovered the bodies of three previously missing people on the morning of February 3, as per Chinese media reports.

The accident occurred at 5:46 pm on Monday in Xiangshui County, Yancheng City, when a large section of the unfinished Yuegang Bridge suddenly gave way.

The main span of the bridge, measuring about 95 metres (312 feet), collapsed without warning, sending debris crashing to the ground.

Two workers were pulled from the wreckage with serious injuries but later died in hospital. Rescue teams then worked through the night searching for three other colleagues who had been trapped and unaccounted for, according to a public notice issued by the local county government on Tuesday.

Emergency services were deployed immediately after the collapse, and round-the-clock search-and-rescue efforts continued until all missing victims were found.

Authorities have launched an investigation to determine what caused the catastrophic failure at the construction site.

By Tamilla Hasanova