Neville Paul, Gleaner Writer

SILOAH, St. Elizabeth:

The Appleton Bridge in north-east St. Elizabeth, which links Thornton and adjoining communities to Siloah, collapsed yesterday morning, minutes after it was crossed by a passenger bus.

Prior to the collapse, the bridge had been ordered closed by the National Works Agency (NWA). However, residents subsequently reopened access to the structure, complaining about travelling a longer route to their homes.

Structural defects

In November 2004, following an inspection by engineers from the NWA, a decision was taken to close the bridge after several structural defects were detected. At that time, Vando Palmer, then communications manager at the NWA, said a Bailey bridge would have been constructed to replace the existing structure. However, several delays were encountered due to problems with ownership of the bridge.

After a series of meetings between the parish council the NWA, the management of the Appleton Estates and the Member of Parliament, Roger Clarke, a decision was taken that three of the agencies, excluding the NWA, would provide the $9 million needed for the construction of the Bailey bridge.

Work on the abutment for the Bailey bridge was started earlier this year but was stopped in mid-February due to the shortage of cement.