Danger was averted on the over four decade old Udu bridge when an unidentified barge had a slight “collision” with it.

A video of the incident which went viral Thursday shows the ship and two tugboats which appeared to be guiding it (ship), moving towards and hitting the bridge after an attempt to divert it.

Voices heard in the video decried the action of the captain, as well as others over an attempt to destroy the only bridge linking Udu kingdom which has about 34 communities to Effurun and Warri.

They immediately called the attention of the Local Government Authority to the development so as to ensure necessary sanction.

Confirming the incident in a chat with our reporter, Vice Chairman of Udu LGA, Mrs. Eloho Awinoro Esq. said the council under the directive of the chairman, Jite Brown, sprang into action the moment it got wind of the situation which occurred Saturday evening.

She narrated that council officials along with Marine Police operatives and officials of the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) stormed the scene Sunday morning for assessment.

“The marine police just knew who had the vessel and tug boats, specifically, the tug boat because if you look at the video, the tug boat was actually towing the vessel towards the bridge.

“The police did what they were supposed to do, we fixed a meeting for Monday morning and we were able to establish the ownership of the vessel and tug boats and what actually happened that caused the collision,” the Vice chairman said.

Speaking further, she disclosed that Governor Sheriff Oborevwori sent a team from the State Ministry of Works headed by the Permanent Secretary to ascertain the condition of the bridge on Monday, “thankfully, it wasn’t a collision, it just touched the bridge. The integrity of the bridge was not compromised in any way. It is pliable, there is nothing wrong with the bridge.”

Awinoro added that the owners were made to write a report of the incident which they claimed was caused by the river tide.

“What they claimed was that the tide pushed the vessel towards the bridge and it touched the bridge. There was no crack,” she said.

The lawyer disclosed that “nobody” was found on board the barge, but the crew of the tug boat were held.

Asked for their identities and that of the owner, she said they will be disclosed when the official report is out.

Also asked the whereabouts of the barge and how it got to the area, she stated “the vessel is still berthing close to the bridge but quite a distance. It was actually there for a while. But we are trying to get them to take it far from the bridge.”

Awinoro further reassured residents that the bridge is in good shape, just as she pointed out some nearly completed rehabilitation works which include resurfacing of the bridge and replacement of railings, being done by the State Government.

She, however, warned that heavy duty trucks are prohibited from plying the bridge as part of efforts to “preserve” it for many more years.

“Heavy duty vehicles are not allowed to ply the bridge. We are going to install barricades on the bridge. However, pending the installation, heavy-duty trucks are not allowed to ply the bridge. We want to preserve it for our children and our children’s children.”

Asked on possible expansion of the bridge as clamoured in some quarters, she said “expansion no, but a second bridge, yes; to reduce the traffic on the bridge. Because that’s the only bridge from Udu to Enerhen. Not really an expansion, but like a second bridge and we believe that this administration would do that.”

The bridge which was constructed in 1976 became a concern to residents in 2019, following reported vibration of the bridge as vehicles drove through.

The Delta State Government reacting to the development then, said it had carried out an integrity test and certified the bridge as good for use.

Efforts to get comments from the NIWA on the development were unsuccessful as of press time.

(The Nation, excluding headline)

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