As it happened: Genoa motorway bridge disaster (original) (raw)

Summary

• The Morandi bridge in Genoa collapsed while in use by vehicles
• At least 35 people are dead, emergency officials say
• Italian transport minister says the incident could be "an immense tragedy"
• The bridge collapsed during extremely heavy rainfall in the area

Live Reporting

David Molloy, Laurence Peter and Ellis Palmer

1. End of live coveragepublished at 18:26 British Summer Time 14 August 2018

We are bringing our live coverage of the bridge collapse in Genoa to a close. Here's a recap of what we know:

• At least 35 people were killed in the collapse, emergency officials say
• A section of the bridge dozens of metres long came down in stormy weather
• Rescuers are still trying to free people trapped under rubble or in vehicles
• Interior Minister Matteo Salvini promised that anyone found to be responsible for the bridge collapse would be held to account
• The motorway's operator said there was "no reason to consider the bridge was dangerous"
• But a structural engineer who lives nearby warned two years ago the bridge had "errors", Italian media report.
  You can follow the latest on this story here.

1. Expert warned of bridge problems in 2016published at 18:14 British Summer Time 14 August 2018

A structural engineer who lectures at Genoa University, Antonio Brencich, warned back in 2016 that there were problems with the bridge, Italian media report. It was inaugurated in 1967.
"Right away the bridge manifested various problems, beyond the construction costs, which went over budget," he wrote in 2016.
"There are errors in this bridge. Sooner or later it will have to be replaced. I don't know when," he warned.
The Italian site ingegneri.info , externalquotes his warning in full.
In the 1990s some major repairs were done to the bridge.
Mr Brencich said the designer, Riccardo Morandi, had miscalculated the "viscous deformation" - an ageing effect on reinforced concrete. "He was an engineer with great insight but lacking in practical calculations." 3. ### Salvini vows to find those responsiblepublished at 18:07 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
Image source, Reuters
Italy's Interior Minister and Deputy PM Matteo Salvini said that in addition to his prayers, he was committed to finding those responsible for the "unacceptable disaster".
"I have crossed that bridge hundreds of times. Now, as an Italian citizen, I will do everything to get the names and surnames of the managers responsible, past and present, because it is unacceptable to die like that in Italy," he said. 4. ### 'Genoa not on its knees'published at 18:06 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
The mayor of Genoa, Marco Bucci, has sought to reassure residents shocked by the disaster.
"Genoa is not on its knees; it will continue its path of growth," Mr Bucci told reporters. 5. ### What did Genoa bridge look like?published at 18:04 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
An estimated 200m (656ft) section of the 1,182m bridge collapsed.
6. ### 'We saw the structure give way'published at 17:58 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
A family of four at the scene told La Repubblica newspaper that they saw a lightning strike at the base of a bridge pylon at 1030 local time.
"We saw the structure give way and then a first truck fly downwards," the father said in shock at the scene.
A psychological support unit has set up in the emergency area at a local hospital. 7. ### 'State of the bridge a concern'published at 17:57 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
Local people had worried for a long time that the bridge was unsafe, a Genoa resident called Elizabeth told the BBC.
"The state of the bridge always concerned us. Nobody has ever crossed that bridge with a light heart. Everybody has always done it praying that the bridge wouldn't fall down. Today that happened." 8. ### 'It was a miracle' - firefighter survives fallpublished at 17:28 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
A 30-year-old Genoa firefighter was caught on the bridge just when it collapsed.
"I saw the road ahead of me give way and I found myself helpless inside my car," Davide Capello told La Repubblica newspaper, external. "I think I fell for about 30 metres and then incredibly the car stopped. Perhaps it bumped into something - it wasn't a violent jolt."
"My colleagues say it was a miracle. The only consequence of this for me was that they inserted a needle into my arm as they were taking me to hospital." 9. ### Photos from the scenepublished at 17:16 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
An Italian journalist working for the La Repubblica newspaper, Matteo Pucciarelli, has shared images of the scene on social media.
One photograph showed rescue workers from the canine unit preparing to go into the rubble.
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Another showed rescue teams working near the broken remains of a lorry in the shallow stream.
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The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. 10. ### Italy PM visiting disaster areapublished at 17:10 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
Italy's Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte will be at the scene shortly to support the search-and-rescue effort and show solidarity with the victims and their families.
At 1830 local time (1630 GMT) he will be there, a statement from his office said.
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The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. 11. ### Collapse 'unexpected and unpredictable' - operatorpublished at 16:48 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
The operator of the motorway says the collapse of the bridge was impossible to predict.
Autostrade's Genoa area director told Reuters: "The collapse was unexpected and unpredictable."
"The bridge was constantly monitored, even more than was foreseen by the law," Stefano Marigliani said.
"There was no reason to consider the bridge dangerous," he added. 12. ### What’s happened to Italian infrastructure spending?published at 16:47 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
BBC Reality Check investigates...
Reality Check
Italian Transport Minister Danilo Toninelli told state TV that the disaster revealed the dilapidated state of Italy’s infrastructure and a lack of maintenance, saying that “those responsible will have to pay”. The new government has pledged to increase investment.

Italy spent more than €14bn (£12.5bn; $16bn) on its roads in 2006, but that dropped to less than €4bn in 2010.
The figures cover spending on new transport construction and the improvement of the existing networks.

Spending started to increase in 2013, when total spend was less than Spain, Germany, France and the UK. 13. ### Genoa FC cancel trainingpublished at 16:35 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
One of the city's two professional football teams, Genoa FC, has cancelled its first-team training for the day as a result of the bridge collapse.
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The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. 14. ### 'Thoughts with victims' - EU chief Tuskpublished at 16:33 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
The European Council President, Donald Tusk, has expressed his sadness at the bridge collapse in a bilingual post on Twitter.
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The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. 15. ### Homes evacuatedpublished at 16:32 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
Sky TG24 reports that all the homes under the segment of bridge no longer held up by any pillars have been evacuated, as there’s a risk it will collapse. 16. ### Death toll now at 35 - firefighterspublished at 16:26 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
Breaking
Italy's fire brigade says at least 35 people are now confirmed dead.
Civil Protection chief Angelo Borrelli, quoted by Ansa news agency, says 30-35 vehicles were crossing the bridge when it collapsed, as well as three large trucks. 17. ### Archbishop of Genoa saddenedpublished at 16:13 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
"I am deeply saddened by the huge disaster that occurred in Genoa and that has caused numerous deaths, several injuries and huge damage," the Archbishop of Genoa, Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco, has said.
"Our prayers are with those affected by the accident. Genoa will rise from the mourning and pain of this day and show its solidarity." 18. ### 'Man extracted from rubble' - reportspublished at 16:05 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
Image source, AFP
Image caption,
A huge rescue effort is under way
Italy's state broadcaster, Rai News, says a man has been extracted alive from the rubble.
He is the fourth person to be rescued alive. 19. ### Italy deputy PM attacks spending limitspublished at 15:49 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
Image source, Reuters
Image caption,
Matto Salvini has criticised spending limits in response to the bridge collapse
Italy's Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini has said that the bridge collapse shows the country must put infrastructure spending before concerns over spending limits.
Asked about the collapse by SkyTG24, Salvini said: "We should ask ourselves whether respecting budget limits is more important than the safety of Italian citizens. Obviously for me it is not."
This is likely to be a reference to the EU - his party is strongly eurosceptic and rejects EU austerity. 20. ### Death toll rises to 30published at 15:46 British Summer Time 14 August 2018
Breaking
About 30 people died in the bridge collapse, Italy's deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini told reporters.
Many more are badly injured, he said.