Images | Investigation underway after partial bridge collapse in Germany

Neil Gerrard Senior Editor, Construction Briefing

11 September 2024

The collapsed Communist-era Carola Bridge in Dresden, Germany, was completed in 1971 (Image: City of Dresden)

An investigation has started after the partial collapse of a Communist-era concrete bridge in Dresden, Germany.

The 32m-wide, pre-stressed concrete box girder Carola bridge across the River Elbe was constructed between 1967 and 1971 by VEB Brückenbau Dresden.

It consists of three superstructures with two piers, one of which sits in the river. The span at the northern end of the bridge is 58m long and the bridge was reputed to be the pre-stressed concrete bridge with the largest span in East Germany (GDR).

A one metre gap has formed on the bridgehead on the Old Town side of the Carola Bridge in Dresden, Germany (Image: City of Dresden)

Nobody was injured during the collapse, which occurred in the early hours of this morning (11 September).

The bridge carries four lanes of road traffic and two tram tracks. The two sections of the bridge carrying road traffic had already undergone maintenance in phases running between 2019 and 2024, according to reports. The section of the bridge affected carries the tram lines and has been scheduled for maintenance work next year. Around 100m of that section of the bridge has collapsed.

The Dresden fire department has warned that other parts of the bridge are at “acute risk” of collapse.

It reported that a one metre gap has formed on the bridgehead on the Old Town side, while two 500m district heating pipes have been damaged.

Dresden’s Mayor Dirk Hilbert said, “We can only be grateful that no one was harmed in this terrible event. I would like to thank the emergency services and the responsible authorities for their quick and prudent actions.

“The first step now is to ensure that any flooding on the Elbe does not pose a danger to people or other structures due to the debris. We are working hard on this and it is our top priority. At the same time, we need to find the causes and develop scenarios for what will happen next at the Carola Bridge.”

A close-up of the collapsed Carola Bridge in Dresden, Germany. (Image: City of Dresden)

A critical moment for Germany’s bridges As Europe’s largest economy, Germany is renowned for having first-class infrastructure but even in one of the region’s wealthiest countries, the bridges are crumbling