Genoa bridge collapse VIDEO: Watch shock moment major Italy motorway disintegrates
A MOTORWAY bridge near the city of Genoa, Italy, has collapsed on Tuesday, with emergency services battling to free 'around ten cars' from the rubble.
Genoa: Moment motorway bridge COLLAPSES
A motorway bridge collapsed on Tuesday near the northern Italian port city of Genoa, local police and fire brigade officials said.
The video, filmed by a resident, shows the moment Ponte Morandi collapsed as various drivers were crossing it.
Part of the bridge remained intact after the collapse.
The moment shocked residents who can be heard in the video screaming “Oh my God. Oh my God.”
The bridge, a part of the A10 motorway, is about 100 metres tall, Italian media say.
Italy transport minister said the Genoa motorway bridge collapse seems like an “immense tragedy”.
Italian television showed images of the collapsed bridge, which was built on the A10 toll motorway in the 1960s. Restructuring work on the bridge was carried out in 2016.
Italy's Ministry of Interior confirmed 35 dead, including a 10-year-old girl.
Genoa: Devastating moments after bridge collapses
30 to 35 cars and three trucks are believed to have been on the bridge at the moment of the collapse.
A witness told Sky Italia television he saw "eight or nine" vehicles on the bridge when it collapsed in what he said was an "apocalyptic scene".
Transport Minister Danilo Toninelli said in a tweet that he was "following with great apprehension what seems like an immense tragedy".
Authorities have now closed off the motorway A10 Genoa-Savona to Genoa Airport in both directions.
Rail services have also currently been suspended.
The collapse of the bridge is believed to have been caused by a structural failure.
The bridge was named after engineer Riccardo Morandi and was built between 1963 and 1967.
It is one of the major motorway bridges in the region of Liguria.
Italy's transport minister called on Wednesday for senior managers to resign at the company operating the bridge that collapsed in the port city of Genoa, killing at least 35 people.
Danilo Toninelli said the government will also look into stripping Autostrade per l'Italia, a unit of the Atlantia group, of the concession to manage the motorway that included the Morandi Bridge, and will be imposing financial penalties on the group.
The Morandi Bridge was built in the 1960s on the A10 toll motorway connecting Genoa to French border.
Mr Toninelli said: ”The top management of Autostrade per l'Italia must step down first of all.
"Autostrade per l'Italia was not able to fulfill its obligations under the contract regulating the management of this infrastructure.
"I have given a mandate to my ministry to start all proceedings to apply the agreement, that is to revoke the concession from these companies and seek significant sanctions which can reach up to 150 million euros based on the terms of the contract."