Newly Built Sichuan Hydropower Bridge Collapses Into River Months After Opening

A major bridge linked to a hydropower plant in southwestern China crumbled on Tuesday, chunks of concrete and steel smashing into the river below—mere months after it had reopened. The Hongqi Bridge, a key stretch of the G317 national highway in Sichuan’s mountainous Maerkang area, gave way in dramatic fashion, Chinese state media revealed.

Officials confirmed the disaster but stressed, luckily, no deaths or injuries. Truth is, they’d already spotted trouble brewing. Cracks had spiderwebbed across the road, and the slope was shifting ominously the day before. By Tuesday afternoon, the right bank was still unstable, forcing traffic shutdowns and urgent public warnings.

Video clips flooding Chinese social media captured the terrifying moment—the bridge bending, then buckling, before vanishing into the gorge in a massive dust plume. The collapse happened just after 3 p.m., dangerously close to the hydropower station fed by the highway.

This wasn’t supposed to happen. Finished earlier this year, the 758-meter cantilever bridge was meant to be a triumph, soaring 625 meters above the valley floor on 172-meter piers. Built by the state-run Sichuan Road & Bridge Group, it was pitched as a symbol of progress, connecting China’s wild west to the Tibetan Plateau.

Now? Skepticism is brewing. Why did it fail so fast? Officials haven’t pinned down an exact cause, but whispers suggest shaky ground might’ve played a role. No one was crossing when it fell—small mercies—but the whole mess has locals and experts alike demanding answers. How does a brand-new bridge, meant to stitch the region together, just… disintegrate? Investigations are crawling forward, but trust? That’s already taken a nosedive.