Authorities in southwest China have launched a comprehensive probe after a newly built bridge in Sichuan province partially collapsed on Tuesday, November 11. The Hongqi Bridge, which spanned 758 metres across a deep gorge near Maerkang city, gave way just months after opening, sending vast chunks of concrete tumbling into the river below.

The dramatic scene, captured on video and widely shared on social media, showed the bridge disintegrating within seconds as the mountainside underneath it slid away. A dense cloud of dust and debris rose into the air, obscuring the structure as its pillars tilted and fell.

Officials confirmed that no casualties were reported in the incident. “Preliminary investigations suggest geological instability in the steep mountain region triggered the collapse,” Chinese state media quoted local authorities as saying.

Engineers Closed Hongqi Bridge Hours Before Collapse

Engineers had already shut down the bridge on Monday afternoon after noticing cracks on nearby slopes and visible shifts in the terrain. At 5:25 pm local time that day, inspectors flagged potential risks on the right bank of the Hongqi Bridge section of the highway, according to Sichuan Daily. This led to an immediate evacuation and activation of emergency protocols.

Conditions worsened the next day. Around 3:00 pm on Tuesday, the mountainside gave way, unleashing a landslide that destroyed a section of the bridge and its approach road along the G317 national highway a key route connecting central China to Tibet.

Completed earlier this year by the Sichuan Road & Bridge Group, the Hongqi Bridge stood approximately 625 metres above the valley floor, close to the Shuangjiangku Hydropower Station and dam. It was inaugurated in September to enhance regional connectivity toward the Tibetan Plateau.

Probe Launched Into Hongqi Bridge Collapse Cause

While local authorities maintain that the collapse was primarily caused by natural ground instability, a technical investigation is underway to determine whether design or construction issues also played a role. There is no official estimate for when the damaged highway might reopen.

The incident comes amid renewed scrutiny of infrastructure safety in China. Just a few months earlier, a railway bridge under construction in Qinghai province collapsed during a cable-tensioning operation, killing at least twelve workers and leaving four others missing, according to Newsweek.