Nhat Lan; Presented by: Huu Quan•November 16, 2025 15:23
The harshness of nature leading to changes in flow and erosion has contributed to pointing out the damaged locations of the Lo River bridge piers to urgently find solutions to repair and prevent the collapse disaster...
Nhat Lan• November 16, 2025
"Give credit to... floods" was the opinion of an elderly voter in the area where I live, when he discussed the incident of some pillars of the Lo River bridge being damaged after only 10 years of use, with rusty steel bars exposed. The reason for the discussion was because during the time waiting to meet with the ward People's Council delegates, the voters were engrossed in discussing the block, the ward..., and then focused on the Lo River bridge incident that was "hot in the press, on Facebook, and even at the National Assembly forum".
Song Lo Bridge seen from above.
The Lo River Bridge incident received many comments and opinions. Such as negligence in supervision, weaknesses in construction. Signs of contractors embezzling from the project, bureaucracy in inspection and testing... The elderly voter heard and said: "This year, the floods caused many disasters, but in this case, we should give credit to the floods...". His opinion received many exchanges and debates. Therefore, he continued: "The foundation and pier construction items of the Lo River Bridge were built underground and in water, so I am sure that without the impact of floods, they would not have been exposed. Thus, it is clear that floods help to detect them in time so that we can focus on repairs to ensure traffic safety, and then clarify whether or not there is embezzlement or embezzlement... But if unfortunately there is an incident of a bridge collapsing, how can we measure the disaster...".
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This year, floods caused many disasters, but in this particular case, we should give credit to the floods…”
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As reported in the press, the damage to the Lo River Bridge has been determined to include pier T5 being eroded deep into the limestone geological layer, exceeding 5.5m compared to the design erosion level; the bored piles downstream are only submerged in a layer of soil and rock about 4.1/17m, many piles have peeled concrete, exposed and rusted steel. Piles T3, T4, T6 also recorded erosion, in which, 1 bored pile at pier T6 has a reduced cross-section from 1.5m diameter to 1.35m...
Since December 2024, according to the inspection results of the Road Technical Center - Vietnam Road Administration and the periodic inspection results of Phu Tho Road Joint Stock Company after the 2024 storm season, the Lo River Bridge has shown signs of local damage. From August 2025 to October 2025, due to the impact of storms No. 5, 10 and 11, Phu Tho province experienced prolonged heavy rains, and floods on the Lo River rose. During this period, the Department of Construction of Phu Tho province had to divert traffic through the Lo River Bridge to ensure the safety of people and vehicles. On October 27, when the Lo River water receded, the Department of Construction of Phu Tho province inspected the actual scene and discovered that the bridge structure continued to be damaged, posing a risk of traffic safety. From here, it led to the urgent announcement that from 13:30 on October 27, 2025, people and vehicles were prohibited from passing through the Lo River Bridge. Also from this time, information and images of the Lo River Bridge with its pillars corroded and rusted steel appeared frequently in newspapers and social networks, and there were doubts about the quality of the construction!
Close-up of damaged Lo River bridge pillar (Phu Tho).
It is worth noting that the information has also been reported by the press that the Lo River Bridge project, before being handed over and put into use, had been technically appraised by a specialized department; in the following periods, there have been many more inspections and checks ("Prosecution of the Lo River Bridge case: The project has been inspected and technically appraised many times" - Tienphong.vn, November 12, 2025). On November 12, 2025, the survey team of the National Assembly's Committee for Science, Technology and Environment, when arriving at the scene to examine the degraded state of the Lo River Bridge, also raised big questions about the construction quality as well as the acceptance and quality inspection work ("National Assembly deputies directly surveyed the Lo River Bridge, pointing out a series of legal loopholes" - Vietnamnet, November 12, 2025).
Regarding traffic works in general, the investment cost from the budget is very large, and there are very high technical requirements to ensure long-term use. With traffic works, if the quality is not guaranteed, it will be easy to recognize when they are degraded, sunk, or damaged. But in bridge works, there are many structures such as foundations and pillars located below the surface of the ground and water. After completion, if it is not a specialized agency with sufficient professional capacity and truly impartial and objective inspection and assessment, no one can know about the quality of the work.
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It is the harshness of nature that leads to changes in the flow and causes erosion that has contributed to pointing out the damaged locations of the Lo River bridge pillars...
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Combining this information, thinking about it, the opinion of the elderly voter in my block, although seemingly "unpleasant", makes sense. The harshness of nature leading to changes in the flow, causing erosion, has contributed to pointing out the damaged locations of the Lo River bridge piers to urgently find solutions to repair, overcome, and prevent the collapse disaster. And from here, it will become a valuable lesson for not only the units implementing traffic construction projects, but also for managers and responsible agencies.
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