MIRI – A bridge that serves as the only link for thousands of rural natives in central Sarawak with the outside world has collapsed, cutting off a big population of longhouse folks and school students.
The Sg Musah Bridge, located across the 166-metre wide Sg Musah in Kapit district, collapsed last night, said Kapit MP Datuk Seri Alexander Nanta Linggi.
“The bridge broke apart late last night about 9pm, following serious earth movements due to ground erosion.
“It broke into two parts…the Public Works Department has sealed off the bridge.
“No one can pass through anymore,” the federal works minister said in a press statement today.
This bridge is the only access linking the interior of the Kapit-Song districts to the outside world.
There are longhouses, primary schools, government clinics and many farms inside the upper reaches beyond the bridge, said Nanta.
“I have asked the Sarawak Works Department to go immediately to the site to mitigate the damage.
“This is a key bridge and the main access for many people.
“The department must act immediately to repair the structure,” he stressed.
Interior Sarawak has thousands of rivers and their tributaries, where bridges are the only link connecting one side to the other that enables vehicles to pass through.
There are numerous rivers where ferries are used in the absence of bridges, especially in those places where the rivers are too wide.
The lack of good bridges was one of the complaints that some grassroots folk had informed the king about recently when His Majesty was here for a land tour of the Pan Borneo Highway route spanning Sabah and Sarawak earlier this month. – The Vibes, September 22, 2023
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