At least 12 dead and 4 missing in an accident on a bridge under construction in China

Beijing.- At least twelve people died and four more remain missing in an accident on a bridge under construction in western China. The incident occurred this Friday at approximately 3:00 local time (19:00 GMT Thursday) on a railway bridge under construction over the Yellow River, in the western province of Qinghai, when some ropes used in the construction work broke. At the time of the accident, 15 workers and a site foreman were in the area most affected by the incident, reports the official People’s Daily. According to the Qinghai Emergency Management Department, search and rescue operations were activated and remained active on Friday afternoon local time. The rescue teams, which include the participation of 806 people, as well as 91 vehicles, 27 boats, a helicopter and five robots, are making every effort to find the missing persons, in addition to providing medical attention and support to the affected families, according to the Xinhua state agency.

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The Ministry of Emergency Management sent a working group to the site after the accident to guide rescue operations and mobilize specialized teams to search for people who fell into the water. The work is part of the railway line between the provinces of Sichuan (center) and Qinghai, located on the Tibetan Plateau. The bridge where the accident occurred, called Jianzha, is one of the most prominent structures of the project.