BANDAR BAHARU: The relatively small size of the bridge at Taman Serdang is detected to be among the causes of its collapse last night.
The district engineer at the Kulim-Bandar Baharu Drainage and Irrigation Department, Mohd Idrus Amir said the reason being that the culvert could not accommodate the strong flow and huge volume of the water passing under the bridge, resulting in soil sedimentation.
“When this happens, it causes the water to flow backward and erodes the soil under the bridge little by little until the bridge collapses.
“This is aggravated by heavy rain causing the water in the upper parts of Sungai Serdang to rise and then flows this way in huge volume,” he said when met at the location of the bridge collapse here today.
He said the bridge was built about 30 years ago, Drainage and Irrigation Department
Meanwhile, Kulim-Bandar Baharu Member of Parliament Datuk Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said he had instructed DID to monitor the condition of al bridges to avoid a similar incident.
He said there were about 1,000 houses located in the area, but the bridge collapse would not affect residents going to Pekan Serdang.
“There is an alternative route for residents to go to Pekan Serdang, although the distance will be farther,” he added. - BERNAMA