Shafaq News- Diyala
Authorities in Iraq’s Diyala province recorded a seriousstructural collapse near Hamrin Bridge, the country’s longest bridge, afterrising water levels in Lake Hamrin caused by heavy rainfall, a governmentsource told Shafaq News on Saturday.
A delegation from the provincial council and the province’sRoads and Bridges Directorate conducted a field inspection to assess thecondition of the structure. "According to the source, the delegation recommendedtemporarily closing the site again and filling the collapsed sections near itsapproaches. However, Diyala’s Roads and Bridges Directorate is facing a lack offinancial allocations needed to carry out repairs and continue otherinfrastructure projects in the province amid Iraq’s ongoing financial crisis."
While the collapse did not damage the concrete supports orstructural blocks of the bridge itself, the source warned that it poses aserious risk to motorists. The bridge had been temporarily opened to trafficbefore its official completion and handover by the contracting company.
Located northeast of Diyala, Hamrin Bridge stretches morethan seven kilometers, including its approaches, making it the longest bridgein Iraq. The project cost exceeds 60 billion Iraqi dinars($39.06M).
Local authorities reopened the new crossing to traffic morethan a month ago before construction was fully completed after waves from thelake damaged the old bridge.
In March, Muhannad Al-Maamouri, head of Diyala’s WaterResources Directorate, told Shafaq News that floodwaters and rainfall increasedinflows into Lake Hamrin to around 2,000 cubic meters per second, raising thereservoir to between 70% and 80% of its 2.5 billion cubic meter capacity.
