Ulsan Taehwa River Old Samho Bridge Traffic Ban.. Concerns Over Pier Collapse

【Financial News Ulsan=Choi Su-sang Reporter】The 'Old Samho Bridge' on the Taehwa River in Ulsan is at risk of collapse due to heavy rain over the past three days.
According to Jung-gu, Ulsan City, at around 8:48 PM on the 20th, part of the old Samho Bridge, which crosses the Taehwa River connecting Samho-dong in Nam-gu and Taehwa-dong in Jung-gu, was washed away.
About 20m of the deck on the side close to Samho-dong, south of the Taehwa River, has sunk by about 1 to 1.5m. 
The police immediately controlled access in both directions and restricted passage on the lower walkway and bicycle path under the bridge. 
Jung-gu also guided residents to detour through a safety message at 9:38 PM that day. 
The old Samho Bridge is 230m long and 5m wide, built in 1924 during the Japanese occupation as the first modern reinforced concrete bridge in the Ulsan area. At one time, vehicles used to pass over it, but now only pedestrians can cross. This bridge was designated as National Registered Cultural Heritage No. 104 on September 4, 2004.
This subsidence is presumed to have occurred due to the impact on the pier from over 330mm of rain that fell in the Ulsan area over the past three days.
In Ulsan, over 330mm of heavy rain poured down over the past three days, submerging urban areas, rivers, cultural heritage sites, and damaging a large water supply pipe supplying tap water to six towns in Ulju-gun, causing various rain damages.

ulsan@fnnews.com Choi Su-sang Reporter