Death toll rises to 19 in Gujarat bridge collapse; 2 still missing

The death toll from the Gambhira Bridge collapse over the Mahisagar River in Gujarat's Vadodara district has tragically risen to 19, more than 52 hours after the incident occurred on Wednesday morning. Rescue operations are still underway near Mujpur village in Padra, as teams from the Vadodara fire brigade, NDRF, and SDRF continue their desperate search for two individuals who remain missing. One of the five persons initially injured and hospitalized has also succumbed to their injuries, contributing to the rising fatality count.

The incident at 7:30 AM on Wednesday saw a span of the 1985-built bridge give way, sending two lorries, an SUV, a pickup van, and an auto-rickshaw plummeting into the river. The bridge, which connected Anand and Vadodara districts, had seen increased use by heavy lorries seeking to avoid tolls on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad national highway. Recovery efforts have been severely hampered by thick layers of mud in the riverbed and the presence of a tanker carrying concentrated sulphuric acid, which poses a chemical hazard to rescue teams.

Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel has ordered a detailed investigation into the bridge collapse and directed immediate inspections of all bridges across the state to ensure public safety. In swift action on Thursday, four officials from the Roads and Buildings Department – Executive Engineer N.M. Nayakawala, Deputy Executive Engineers U.C. Patel and R.T. Patel, and Assistant Engineer J.V. Shah – were suspended based on preliminary findings from an expert team's on-site investigation into the bridge’s repairs, inspections, and quality checks. The Chief Minister has also announced a compensation of ₹4 lakh for the families of those who died.