Warning of degraded suspension bridges during flood season in Nghe An
It is the flood season, but currently in Nghe An there are many "old" and degraded suspension bridges that have to "carry" people and vehicles every day, posing a potential safety risk.
Danger lurks
Thanh Nam suspension bridge in Bong Khe commune is one of the largest suspension bridges across Lam river in Con Cuong district but is seriously degraded.
According to observations, many of the bridge screws were rusted, the bridge surface was peeling and cracked in many sections, and the suspension cables were old. Every time vehicles passed on the bridge, especially cars, they heard a creaking sound.
Mr. Tran Minh Tien in Bong Khe commune - owner of a 5-seat car that often passes by here, worriedly said: "When traveling on the bridge, the bridge shakes strongly, making us feel very insecure. Every time we pass, we breathe a sigh of relief."
A worker from the traffic management unit who is on duty with heavy trucks at the Thanh Nam suspension bridge shared: To ensure the safety of people passing through, we are on duty 24 hours a day to prevent heavy vehicles from crossing the bridge, or to guide people on rainy and stormy days.
Specifically, only vehicles with a vehicle and cargo weight of less than 8 tons are allowed to cross the bridge. Vehicles are only allowed to run on the bridge at a speed of 5 km/h, and vehicles can only cross the bridge one at a time. When the wind is higher than level 6, people and vehicles are prohibited from crossing the bridge.
Thanh Nam suspension bridge was put into use in 2000, with a width of 3.5 meters and a length of more than 200 meters. The bridge is managed by the Nghe An Department of Transport, connecting the main traffic route to the communes of Mau Duc, Don Phuc, Binh Chuan, Thach Ngan...
Mr. Tran Anh Tuan - Head of the Economic Infrastructure Department of Con Cuong district, said: The demand for traffic and transport of goods through the suspension bridge system is increasing, especially the Thanh Nam suspension bridge. However, due to the weak bridge, heavy trucks cannot cross the bridge, causing great difficulties for people in transporting goods and agricultural products, hindering the economic development of the locality.
Since 2021, Con Cuong district has started construction of Thanh Nam bridge across Lam river in Bong Khe commune connecting with Con Cuong town (about 2 km from the old suspension bridge). It is a permanent bridge with prestressed reinforced concrete structure. The length of the bridge is about 412 m, the road at both ends of the bridge has a total length of 1.78 km. The bridge consists of 12 spans, each span is 33 m. After this bridge is put into use, it will be able to transport all kinds of goods, especially ensuring safety during the rainy season.
About 5 km away is Bai Oi suspension bridge in Chi Khe commune, Con Cuong district, built in 2011, with a length of 255.2 m, a width of 2.6 m, and has been put into use but has now degraded, with many locations rusted and the concrete cracked.
Mr. Tran Anh Tuan, Head of the Economic - Infrastructure Department of Con Cuong district, said: Con Cuong district has 6 suspension bridges across Lam river in the communes of Bong Khe, Lang Khe, Chi Khe... Because they were built a long time ago, most of the suspension bridges are now degraded. Recently, the district has been allowed by the relevant sector to repair 3 suspension bridges with a value of 3.5 billion VND, including Lam Khe suspension bridge (Chi Khe commune), Khe Rang suspension bridge (Bong Khe commune), Ban Diem suspension bridge (Chau Khe commune).
Do not allow vehicles to circulate on stormy days
For Tan Ky district, there are currently 4 suspension bridges including: Do Ro suspension bridge connecting Nghia Binh and Nghia Dong communes, An Ngai suspension bridge connecting Tan Huong and Tan An communes, Tan Thanh Hong suspension bridge connecting Nghia Hanh and Huong Son communes, Tien Ky suspension bridge crossing Khe Than serving Tien Ky commune.
Mr. Vi Van Quang, Head of Economic - Infrastructure Department of Tan Ky district said: The four suspension bridges were all built over 15 years ago and have deteriorated. Since 2022, the district has repaired and maintained all four bridges, but there are still concerns about the rainy and flood season. The funding for maintenance and repair is limited, and repairs can only be made when damaged. State management of construction protection and maintenance in some localities is still limited. The district has directed communes to mobilize forces to strictly prohibit heavy vehicles from passing through, and prohibit people and vehicles from circulating during storms.
According to statistics from the Nghe An Department of Transport, there are up to 70 suspension bridges in the province. Of which, the Department and Road Management Area 2 (Vietnam Road Administration) manage two suspension bridges; the remaining 68 bridges are managed by districts. Due to the long-term use and increasing number of vehicles, many suspension bridges in other localities such as Ky Son, Tuong Duong, Quy Chau, Que Phong... are also being degraded and damaged.
Not to mention that most of the suspension bridges in Nghe An are located in mountainous terrain, often affected by floods. For example, on March 6, the Ke Ninh suspension bridge across the Hieu River, connecting the two villages of Ke Ninh and Dinh Tien (Chau Hanh commune) suddenly collapsed.
The cause of the bridge collapse was determined by the authorities to be "due to the subsidence of the roadbed at the head of the bridge under the anchor bar, causing the anchor bar downstream of the M2 anchor bar to shift and collapse, causing the main cable pulling the top of the tower pier downstream of the M2 pier to shift horizontally, causing the tower pier to become unstable, collapsing the entire suspension span of the bridge.
Mr. Nguyen Trong Quang, Head of Traffic Construction Quality Management Department, Nghe An Department of Transport, said: The suspension bridge system in Nghe An was built a long time ago, so there are currently many degraded bridges. In addition, the districts also face technical difficulties in performing maintenance and repair.
Before the rainy season, the Department of Transport requires localities to inspect and review the current status of suspension bridges, promptly detect damage for repair. If damage is detected, the investor is required to hire consultants with professional capacity to inspect, test, and propose appropriate repair and handling solutions, ensuring traffic safety and the longevity of the project.
The advantages of suspension bridges are low investment costs, short construction time, meeting the needs of people immediately but it has a low load capacity. Suspension bridges are mainly cable-stayed suspension bridges, gate pillars are made of steel or concrete; steel beams, steel or wooden bridge decks, with steel suspension beams; design load from 1 ton to 2.5 tons with bridge length from 35-50m; bridge width from 1.2-2.5m.
Therefore, the "lifespan" and safety of suspension bridges are always a concern before each rainy season. To ensure safety during the rainy season, localities need to send forces to guard both ends of the bridge, not allowing vehicles and people to travel during rainy and stormy days. Check and detect incidents and report to relevant departments for timely handling to ensure traffic safety.
