Steel lorry ‘triggered Genoa bridge collapse’

A Fiat truck hauling 44tons of steel may have triggered the collapse of the already weakened motorway bridge in Genoa last month.

Experts believe a section of the steel support structure was either left out during construction or had corroded.

Investigators said the bridge was at breaking point when Giancarlo Lorenzetto drove his lorry across it with a load close to the 46-ton limit. He told Corriere della Sera that he “thought it was all over” when his lorry fell 45ft. He escaped unscathed.