Toll in Vadodara bridge collapse rises to 13, Gujarat CM orders inquiry

The toll due to the bridge collapse in Vadodara rose to 13 on Thursday, and rescue operations are underway, ANI reported.

The collapse of the 43-year-old bridge on Wednesday morning led to at least five vehicles falling into the Mahisagar river. Five persons have been rescued from the site till now, the news agency quoted Surender Singh, Commandant of the 6th Battalion of the National Disaster Response Force, as saying.

Two trucks, an Eeco van, a pickup truck and an auto-rickshaw had fallen into the river on Wednesday.

Three members of a family – Ramesh Padhiyar, Vedika Padhiyar and Naitaik Padhiyar – are among those who died, The Indian Express reported. All of them were travelling in the Eeco van.

The newspaper quoted Sonal Padhiyar, the sole survivor from the vehicle, as saying: “We fell in a matter of seconds. Before we could even realise what happened, the vehicle had hit the water and was being pulled into the river.”

Three other victims of the bridge collapse have been identified as Hasmukh Parmar, Vakhatsinh Jadav and Pravin Jadav.

Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel ordered an inquiry by the Roads and Building Department into the collapse, The Indian Express reported.

The kin of those who died will receive Rs 2 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund and Rs 4 lakh from the state government. Those...

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