Three killed, six injured after under-construction bridge in Iraq’s Karbala collapses
Police cordoned off the area while emergency teams combed through the wreckage
Dubai: A bridge under construction in the Iraqi city of Karbala collapsed on Saturday evening, killing at least three people and injuring six others, local officials said.
The Al Atayshi Bridge, located near the Baghdad Gate entrance to the city, gave way suddenly, sending concrete and steel crashing down on cars and passersby. Initial reports indicated that three people were killed, while six others sustained serious injuries and were rushed to nearby hospitals.
Footage circulating widely on social media captured the moment of the collapse, as civil defence teams rushed into clear debris and search for survivors. Rescue workers and police cordoned off the area while emergency teams combed through the wreckage.
Authorities said they were still assessing the full scale of the damage and investigating the cause of the failure, which has shaken residents of Karbala, a city that draws millions of pilgrims each year.
The deputy head of the Karbala Provincial Council said the collapse of the Al Atayshi Bridge, which connects the road between Karbala and Baghdad, had left several civilians injured, though the final toll was not yet known. He noted that the bridge was still under construction and had not been completed, adding that a formal investigation would be launched to determine the circumstances of the incident.
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