Morbi bridge collapse: The death toll in Morbi suspension bridge collapse rose to 134 on Monday. The more than-a-century-old bridge on the Machchhu river in Morbi, located around 300 km from the state capital Gandhinagar, reopened five days ago after extensive repairs and renovation. It was crammed with people when it collapsed around 6.30 pm on Sunday.
Apart from locals, people from nearby cities and villages had also come to the bridge on a holiday when it collapsed. Due to the Diwali vacation and being a Sunday, there was a rush of tourists on the bridge, a major tourist attraction.
But, this is not the first time that the Machchhu river has witnessed a tragedy of this scale. In 1979, too a tragedy struck and claimed thousands of lives.
On August 11, 1979, a dam on the Machhu river collapsed killing at least 1,500 people and more than 13000 animals. Due to incessant rains, local rivers were flooded and the Machhu Dam was overflowing. The dam broke at 3.15 pm and within 15 minutes the water of the dam had engulfed the entire city. When Indira Gandhi visited Morbi a few days after this tragic accident, it was very difficult for her to conduct her tour because of the foul odour.
