Mahakali Floods Wash Away Span of Dodhara Chandani Suspension Bridge

A section of the landmark Dodhara Chandani suspension bridge over the Mahakali River collapsed on Wednesday morning after swollen floodwaters swept away a central pillar, severing a critical pedestrian link between Dodhara Chandani Municipality and Bhimdattanagar in Kanchanpur district.

Authorities had completely halted two-wheeler and pedestrian movement across the river earlier in the morning after decking plates warped and detached under heavy strain. Police Deputy Superintendent Tek Bahadur Rawat, spokesperson for the Kanchanpur District Police Office, initially confirmed that traffic was suspended for safety after nuts and bolts came loose and iron plates buckled upward, as reported by Onlinekhabar.

Conditions worsened shortly after daybreak when flood currents undermined the riverbed. According to Onlinekhabar, the compromised bridge section plunged into the surging river at around 8:00 a.m. once a middle pillar gave way. Setopati, however, cited DSP Rawat placing the collapse slightly earlier, at around 7:45 a.m. Setopati noted that roughly six metres of the bridge structure bulged upward on the Dodhara side as the midsection snapped.

Police detailed that the damaged segment involves the third span counting from the Dodhara Chandani side, which corresponds to the sixth span from the Bhimdatta Municipality-13 side, Onlinekhabar reported. Lokaantar similarly reported that the collapse destroyed the third span toward Dodhara Chandani following the structural failure of the mid-river pier.

Local residents noticed severe deformations hours before the collapse. Khadak Rawal, manager of local news portal Mahakali Online, told Onlinekhabar that commuters crossing between 4:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. noticed decking plates lifting abnormally and alerted police. The buckling portion collapsed into the river three to four hours later. Commuters travelling between Dodhara Chandani and the district headquarters must now detour roughly two kilometres upstream to cross via the newly constructed concrete bridge, Rawal added.

Provincial authorities are working to determine the full extent of structural failure. Jagat Prasad Joshi, director at the Sudurpashchim Province Transport Infrastructure Directorate, told Onlinekhabar that a technical evaluation team was being dispatched to inspect the crossing after receiving notification from the Kanchanpur Chief District Officer. Joshi noted that repair requirements can only be established after engineers finish an on-site structural appraisal.

Completed in 2004 (2061 BS), the multi-span pedestrian suspension bridge stretches 1,452.96 metres across the Mahakali riverbed. It has long been celebrated as Asia's second-longest pedestrian suspension bridge.