EL SALVADOR: BAILEY BRIDGE COLLAPSES UNDER WEIGHT OF 150 TON TRUCK

(10 Nov 1996) Spanish/Nat

Residents in eastern El Salvador are being forced to cross the Lempa River the old fashioned way.

The sinking of Bailey Bridge has left four provinces practically unreachable and has led to major transportation problems in the area.

The bridge collapsed under the weight of a 150-ton truck trying to drive across it.

Bailey Bridge has fallen down.

The 360-metre long structure collapsed after a 150-ton truck tried to cross it. The strain proved too much for this temporary structure.

Now four provinces in eastern El Salvador are practically unreachable - local residents have been forced to adopt new ways to cross the Lempa River.

Some try climbing over the collapsed structure and then jumping over the gap.

Others have opted for more traditional methods of crossing the river - by boat.

For the ones who can't afford the boat fare, the only way to cross is on foot....while those who are fit enough can swim to the other side.

This is Bailey Bridge before it collapsed - almost four thousand vehicles drove across it every day.

The bridge links the agricultural and industrial provinces of Usulutan, San Miguel, La Union, and Morazan with the rest of the mainland.

Bailey Bridge was used extensively during the civil war in El Salvador - it was built as a temporary replacement to the "Golden Bridge" which was blown up by former guerrillas from the Farabundo National Liberation Front - or F-S-L-N.

The Golden Bridge - erected in 1944 - was the first suspension bridge to be built in El Salvador.

Local residents say the collapse of Bailey Bridge is causing serious disruption in their day-to-day living.

SOUNDBITE: (Spanish)
Translation: "For the business, one cannot transport anything, it's impossible to do your errands...you can imagine what it's like".
SUPER CAPTION: Vox pop

SOUNDBITE: (Spanish)
Translation: "I find it very difficult, I don't know what to do and I have needs. My son is under treatment at Zacate's hospital, so how am I going to take him over there, how am I going to get there?"
SUPER CAPTION: Vox pop

SOUNDBITE: (Spanish)
Translation: "People are being affected because we charge a fixed bus fare of 5 colones from San Marcos to Usulutan but for the boat some charge 5 and others maybe 2 so people are suffering financially as well".
SUPER CAPTION: Vox pop

The company which owned the 150-ton truck that caused the bridge's collapse has promised to send in a team of experts to assess the damages and pay towards the repairs.

President Armando Calderon Sol announced a new "Golden Bridge" will be built next year.

In the meantime, boat owners are making a tidy profit out of the untimely collapse of Bailey Bridge, which in turn is proving to be a major headache for those who have no option but to cross the river by boat.

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