Chinese bridge collapse kills at least 12 construction workers

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This aerial photo released by Xinhua News Agency shows the site of an under construction bridge that collapsed on the Qinghai section of the Sichuan-Qinghai Railway causing multiple dead and missing, in northwest China's Qinghai Province on Friday, Aug. 22, 2025. (Li Zhanyi/Xinhua via AP)

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3:41 AM on Saturday, August 23

The Associated Press

BEIJING (AP) — The collapse of an under-construction railway bridge over a major river in China has killed at least 12 workers and left four others missing, state media reports said.

Aerial photos from the official Xinhua News Agency show a large section missing from the bridge's curved aquamarine arch. A bent section of the bridge deck hangs downward into the Yellow River below.

Sixteen workers were on the bridge in northwest China's Qinghai province when a steel cable snapped about 3 a.m. Friday during a tensioning operation, Xinhua said. Boats, a helicopter and robots were being used in the search for the missing.

The bridge is 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) long and its deck is 55 meters (180 feet) above the surface of the river below, the English-language China Daily newspaper said.