Nine killed and others missing as Indonesia footbridge collapses
Officials say a group of young people had been using the bridge as a vantage point for photography before it collapsed.
Monday 20 January 2020 07:23, UK
Nine people have died in Indonesia after a footbridge collapsed.
Bodies have been pulled from the water as far as 12 miles (20km) away after the busy bridge broke on Sunday, plunging people into the river below.
Several people are still missing and presumed dead, including a 14-year-old boy, according to local officials.
The bridge was located in the Kaur district of Bengkulu province in the southwest of the country's Sumatra island.
Around 20 people have been rescued by authorities, with at least one person taken to hospital with serious injuries.
The head of a local disaster agency, Ujang Syafiri, said that about 30 people, most whom were teenagers, had just come back from a trip to a nearby power plant, and were using the bridge to take photos of the heavy-flowing river below.
"It was apparently (beyond) its capacity. Some teens even had rocked the bridge while joking," Mr Syafiri said.
According to locals, the bridge is used mostly by farmers living nearby.
Rescuers are searching for victims, with photos showing teams using rubber boats as part of the operation near the bridge.
Rains over the last few weeks have led to heavy flooding and even landslides in Indonesia, with millions of people living within areas prone to flooding or mountainsides prone to collapse.