People had gathered at Bijanbari to attend Gorkha Janamukti Morcha Chairman Bimal Gurung´s speech and listen to songs by artistes like Uday Sotang and Manila Sotang when the tragedy struck. [break]
There were over 160 spectators on the bridge built in 1972 when it snapped. Locals said the bridge had been weakened by last month´s earthquake. The bridge was 80 feet long and six feet wide.
After the bridge snapped at around 6:30 pm, those on it fell about 10 feet into the river. Police said casualty was high because search and rescue became difficult due to darkness.
Before the bridge snapped, volunteers and police had tried to reduce the crowd on the bridge, but unsuccessfully.
The accident site is 40 kilometers from the Darjeeling market.
A five-day fair was on in Bijanbari while a musical concert was about to start at Chungthung Tea Estate when the accident occurred. Saturday was the last day of the fair.
“I had just crossed the bridge when it snapped. I barely survived,” said Rohit Rai, a local.
Settlement around Bijanbari is dominated by Nepali-speaking people.
Until Sunday afternoon, only 20 of those killed had been identified. Police said the remaining 12 are yet to be identified. The injured are receiving treatment at hospitals in Siliguri and Darjeeling.
West Bengal´s Chief Minister Mamata Benarjee arrived in Darjeeling Sunday evening and met with the injured. She announced a cash relief of IRs 200,000 to the families of each of the deceased.
Similarly, she announced a cash relief of IRs 25,000 to IRs 50,000 to the injured, depending on their injuries. She also said that a new bridge would be immediately built. After the bridge snapped, Bijanbari has been isolated from surrounding villages.
Following the incident, events planned ahead of Deepawali in other places in Darjeeling district have been called off. The Gorkha Janamukti Morcha has appealed to Darjeeling-residents to refrain from shooting fireworks during Tihar, in view of the tragedy.
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