Italian Freeway bridge collapses near Genoa with dozens reported dead

Luca Zennaro

Rescuers at work amid the rubble after a highway bridge collapsed in Genoa, Italy, 14 August 2018. A large section of the Morandi viaduct upon which the A10 motorway runs collapsed in Genoa on Tuesday. 

At least 11 people are reported to have died after a freeway bridge collapsed in Genoa, Italy.

Sections of the Morandi bridge that forms part of the A10 freeway in northern Italy have collapsed to the ground, striking buildings below.

Photographs on social media appear to show the missing sections as well as rubble lying on the ground below.

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Italy’s ambulance service has said there are “dozens of dead” following the collapse, according to both Reuters and Sky News. Subsequently, Italy’s Ansa news agency said the Italian interior ministry had confirmed the number of dead at 11, although that number was expected to rise. The same report said there were five people who had been seriously injured.

A video on an official Italian police account revealed the extent of the collapse.

https://twitter.com/poliziadistato/status/1029315182919659520

Other videos from the scene appear to show fallen trucks and cars as well as emergency services attending to at least one person.

Italian Transport Minister Danilo Toninelli has also posted on Twitter to say he is following what has happened in Genoa and that it appeared to be “an immense tragedy.”

Shares in the Italian freeway operator Atlantia are down nearly 9 percent.