7 dead, 9 missing in northwestern China bridge incident

ANKARA

At least seven people died and nine have been missing after a construction cable broke early Friday under a construction bridge site in northwestern China, according to the state-run media reports.

The incident occurred at the Yellow River bridge on the Sichuan-Qinghai Railway in Qinghai province, China Daily reported.

Search operation for the missing people who fell into the water is underway as emergency teams arrived at the spot.

The bridge, located at the border between the Jianzha county in the Huangnan Tibetan autonomous region and Hualong Hui autonomous county in Haidong, Qinghai, is the first steel truss arch railway bridge in China to cross the Yellow River.

The construction of the bridge’s cable towers was completed on June 14, with the joining of the structures scheduled for this month.

* Writing by Islamuddin Sajid.