For the second time in less than a year, a four-lane concrete bridge being built in the eastern Indian state of Bihar over the River Ganges has fallen, once again casting doubt on the quality of its construction.
On camera, the 3-kilometer-long (1.8-mile-long) bridge can be seen violently collapsing into the river on Sunday, spewing dust and debris into the air and causing waves to ripple across the revered river.
Two times since building on the Sultanganj Bridge began in 2017, the most recent of which occurred on Sunday. The first collapse occurred in April of last year. It’s unclear what caused the bridge to fall last year or whether those issues had been fixed.
Crowds of people on the river bank can be seen filming the bridge and shouting as it tumbles down. CNN has not been able to confirm reports of any injuries.
On Monday, Bihar’s chief minister Nitish Kumar said he had ordered an inquiry into the incident.
In a statement Monday, the Canadian design and engineering firm behind the bridge, McElhanney, it was aware of the “partial collapse” of the bridge and is “deeply concerned” about the safety and well-being of those affected by the incident.
The company will “cooperate with any investigation,” the statement added.
CNN has reached out to SP Singla Constructions, who was building the bridge, but did not receive an immediate response.
According to McElhanney, the bridge was expected to include four lanes of traffic and a footpath, providing “an important new link across the Ganges.”
It was also expected to ease congestion on the state’s three existing road bridges, the firm said on its website.
The Sultanganj Bridge is not the only one to have collapsed in India in the last year. Last October, a suspension bridge gave way in the town of Morbi in Gujarat, killing 135 people.