A tale of two bridges

It seems ironic that while Cebu was celebrating the opening of one bridge, in nearby Bohol people were mourning the collapse of another.

As of this writing four people have been confirmed killed and 18 others injured after the old Clarin Bridge in Barangay Poblacion, Loay town, collapsed Wednesday afternoon. At least eight passenger and cargo vehicles on the bridge at the time fell into the Loboc River.

The bridge was packed with vehicles because traffic had been rerouted to allow the construction of a new bridge spanning the river just nearby. It was this same vehicular traffic that was blamed for the collapse of the ageing bridge, which was designed for flowing traffic only.

While there will be people ultimately held responsible for this incident we don’t want to point fingers immediately. There are still many details we are not aware of regarding the incident.

There are also questions that have yet to be asked. Was the bridge properly maintained or regularly checked? Were traffic officials aware of what kind of traffic the bridge was designed for? Did the drivers of the cargo and passenger vehicles know how much weight could be safely taken across the bridge? Were there unmistakable signs that the bridge was in trouble?

Suffice it to say things could have turned out differently if some things had been done differently.

Of course we are not saying that what happened to the old Clarin Bridge will be the fate of the newly-opened CebuCordova Link Expressway (CCLEX) one day. These two bridges, although basically the same, are different in design and function.

However, it still serves as a reminder of what can happen if people are not fully aware of the limits of any structure spanning a body of water. And considering how many bridges there are in the Philippines, it may be time to look into the particularly older ones we have.