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A truck fell from the Asparuhov bridge in Varna. The driver died, the Interior Ministry announced.
The incident occurred around 2:15 p.m. on Thursday in the traffic lane heading towards Burgas.
The truck fell over the railing of the dry part under the bridge.
At the moment there is no information on the reasons and circumstances that led to the serious accident, police said in Varna.
The driver, who is about 45 years old, died on the spot, announced the Emergency Center in Varna. According to the Traffic Police, he is a qualified driver.
The first search of the truck was made in 2016. At the time of the accident, the car was carrying dirt and stones.
According to witnesses, he was driving at the permitted speed before falling onto an old concrete road on the island. There is no road that stops at the bridge.
Several versions are in the works, including a puncture or driver weakness.
The traffic accident hampered traffic, as traffic in the direction of Burgas runs on only one lane.
After the inspection, the restoration of the railings broken by the car will begin.
The serious incident sparked a flood of comments on social media about the state of the Asparuhov Bridge. It has been in operation since 1976 and consists of a total of 11 facilities. In 2016, it began its review, with plans to complete it in two years, but instead it has been going on for five years. At the moment, facilities 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 have been repaired, as the invested funds amount to about BGN 7.8 million.
Repair work on the bridge is carried out without public procurement, but with direct allocation from the Varna district road maintenance companies. This model was introduced during Boyko Borissov’s second cabinet, but it became necessary in practice during his third term.
The Road Infrastructure Agency (RIA) issued a crisis message that the facility is in overall good condition, without commenting on why the originally announced two-year repair is now in its fifth year and it is unclear when it will be completed.
RIA states that the conclusion on the good condition of the Asparuhov Bridge is from independent road experts from the research community: professors from the University of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Geodesy and the Lyuben Karavelov School of Civil Engineering, as well as experts from Construction Research Institute – NISI.
In late 2019, experts from the RIA Institute of Highways and Bridges also inspected the facility and concluded that the facility’s structure is strong and safe to cross.
The opinion of the independent road experts is that the supporting structure is in good condition, given its 44-year operation. For the most part, the defects and damages recorded in the bridge deteriorate the appearance, without directly affecting the load-bearing capacity of the structures, says RIA.
Independent experts have recommended short-term measures – replacement of the damaged expansion joint of the steel structure on the road in the direction of Burgas – Varna (what happened with the incident – ed.) And elimination of defects in the underlying elements. Partial repairs to the joint have already been carried out, the RIA says.
Other recommended measures are the cleaning of the gaskets, in case of rain, the inspection of leaks through them, as well as the monitoring of the movement of the mobile bearings.
As a measure to improve the operational condition of the bridge, it is also recommended to develop a project of repair and restoration activities, including complete rehabilitation of the carriageway, repair of joints and bearings, as well as the necessary repairs of steel cap and reinforced concrete superstructures .
In the long term, due to the fact that during the years of operation of the Asparuhov Bridge the design and implementation standards were updated and changed, as well as to bring the construction of the facility to current requirements, it is recommended to conduct an in-depth inspection, digitization of all design and construction and operational documentation, recalculations and, if necessary, repair and reinforcement of certain elements. All these activities must be analyzed, structured, prioritized and planned in the future, is the opinion of independent road experts.
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