Ha Noi shuts down Long Bien bridge

No passengers nor vehicles are allowed to cross the bridge from both sides, according to an announcement by the Ha Noi Department of Transport.

The move was made to ensure safety for pedestrians and vehicles as the water levels in the Red River are rising high due to heavy rains induced by typhoon Yagi and water releases from upstream reservoirs.

Earlier the same day, the capital city banned certain types of vehicles on the nearby Chuong Duong bridge from 10 a.m. on September 10 until further notice.

Long Bien bridge, inaugurated in 1902, connects Long Bien and Hoan Kiem districts. This is one of seven bridges spanning the Red River.

Earlier, the Department of Transport announced that passenger coach buses with over nine seats and freight vehicles heavier than 0.5 tonnes were banned from traveling on Chuong Duong Bridge, another bridge crossing the Red River, in the wake of the bridge collapse that killed eight people in Phu Tho Province ./.