A bridge on a normally busy provincial road in northern Italy collapsed on Wednesday but, with virtually no traffic due to the coronavirus lockdown, there were just two casualties who suffered minor injuries.

The 260-metre bridge on the SS330 road near the town of Aulla – roughly mid-way between Genoa and Florence – collapsed at 10.25am local time.

The incident highlights the continuing poor state of repair of Italy’s road network, after the collapse of a motorway bridge in the port city of Genoa in 2018 that killed 43 people.

Helicopter views of the area of the latest collapse showed sections of the bridge crossing the river Magra had fallen to the level of the water, buckling a stretch of road behind it.

The lockdown to halt the spread of coronavirus meant that heavy midweek traffic that might normally have been using the bridge was absent, meaning only two vehicles were involved.

Two truck drivers were taken to hospital with minor injuries, a fire brigade spokesman said.

A fire brigade team helped by dogs inspected the debris of the concrete bridge – dating to 1908 and rebuilt after the second world war – but did not find any other vehicles.

The bridge used to be managed by provincial authorities, before being put under the management of ANAS, a company controlled by the state-owned railway group, Ferrovie dello Stato.

Keep reading in The Guardian

Find more news here

Find events calendar here

Find media kit here

Join Construction Links Network

Submit your FREE Business Directory listing

Subscribe to E-newsletter