France bridge collapse HORROR: One dead and 7 injured as Bessieres suspension bridge fails
A SUSPENSION bridge over the Tarn river in southwest France has collapsed, causing a 15-year-old girl to be killed and several others to be injured.
France: Police cordon off scene following bridge collapse
The bridge in Mirepoix, north of Toulouse, collapsed at about 8am on Monday morning, sending a car and a truck plunging into the river below. A 15-year-old girl was killed in the incident and seven other people have reportedly been injured. Three vehicles were caught in the bridge collapse, head of the Haute-Garonne department Georges Meric has said.
Emergency workers managed to resuce four people but authorities have said several others are "probably missing".
The 15-year-old victim had been in a car with her parents at the time of the bridge collapse, local newspaper La Dêpeche report.
A driver of a truck is unaccounted for as well as a possible driver of a third car, authorities have said.
Mr Meric said over 60 emergency workers, including an air ambulance, were at the scene.
He said an investigation would be carried out into the condition of the bridge.
The bridge connects the towns of Mirepoix-sur-Tarn and Bessieres.
According to France Bleu, four people - the truck driver, a woman, a man and a child - fell into the water.
Local authorities have urged people to stay away from the area and added that as a precaution the nearby Villemur suspension bridge has also been closed.
One eyewitness told French broadcaster BFMTV they heared a loud noise "like a huge thunderclap".
The witness, who lives 150m from the bridge, added: "I went outside and saw the bridge collapse with a car half out of the water."
The mayor of Mirepoix-sur-Tarn Eric Oget described the bridge as a "very important crossing point" for people going to work in Toulouse, on the other side of the river.
He added that many pedestrians, including schoolgoers, also used the bridge and described the accident as a "real trauma".