Majerhat bridge collapse: Biker who fell with flyover recounts his miraculous escape

Rahul Singh was on Majerhat bridge on his way to attend a meeting in New Town on his Bajaj Pulsar AS 150. He recounts his miraculous escape:

Vehicles are seen stuck after a section of Majerhat bridge collapsed in Kolkata,. Photo: PTI

KOLKATA: Rahul Singh, 27, stays in Parnasree, Behala and works in his father's outsourcing business. He was on Majerhat bridge on his way to attend a meeting in New Town on his Bajaj Pulsar AS 150. He recounts his miraculous escape: Traffic had come to a standstill as it often happens on the bridge and, like other bikers, I had negotiated my way to the extreme left flank and was trying to press ahead, wriggling by the static cars. Suddenly the bridge seemed to shake and I stopped, thinking it was an earthquake. The biker behind me called out: " Ruka kyun? Chalte raho (Why did you stop? Keep moving)." In no time, the bridge started collapsing. It seemed to happen over four-five seconds. The railings broke. And we, the bikers, fell over to a side as the bridge itself sunk. It is not a very high bridge and the distance we fell had been reduced by half because of the pile of mud that had been stacked up in course of construction work for the Majerhat Metro station underneath. I had my helmet on and could see nothing for a while as there was mud all over. It was only after I took it off that I realised that the bridge too had fallen with us. All of us gathered our wits and our bikes. The police came to check if we were injured. All I felt was a sprain in the waist. The other bikers also seemed unhurt. It might have been a different story if our helmets were not on. There was a road on the side as the Garden Reach flyover starts from there. The police asked us to take that road and go home. I wanted to find out what had happened and went back on the bridge. It seemed the vehicles in the middle were the worst hit. Then I called my father and told him that the bridge had collapsed. He had no idea that I was on it and asked me to stay clear. It was only on reaching home that I related my experience. Traffic on Diamond Harbour Road has been increasing day by day, and my father and I had been discussing the poor state of the bridge. Once upon a time, trams used to ply on the bridge. When a part of it fell, the tram tracks came jutting out from underneath. That proved that they had simply been covering the surface with layer upon layer of asphalt, adding to its weight! The Telegraph Calcutta