| Largely because it contained "no rebar": |
A bridge that collapsed in China killing at least 34 people broke apart like a pat of "beancurd" because there were apparently no steel reinforcement bars, state media said on Wednesday, quoting a rescuer. Police have detained a construction manager and a project supervisor for questioning. Premier Wen Jiabao urged the local government to deal with the issue "seriously", the newspaper said. The work safety and quality watchdogs were investigating the cause of the collapse, but the newspaper quoted a rescue worker as saying that the bridge was mainly built of stone and concrete. "No reinforced steel bars were seen in the collapsed bridge supports. It was like a knife cutting through tofu (beancurd)," Hou Jiaping, a rescue worker, was quoted as saying.
Pictures in newspapers supported his comments. Sections of the bridge lay flat on the ground, lumps of rock bursting through the concrete and no steel bars to be seen. |