Bridge Collapse on Moju River could affect grain shipments

A section of a bridge on the Moju River collapsed early on Saturday after a boat crashed into a large bridge pillar, leaving five people missing and potentially affecting soybean and corn shipments from northern ports. The bridge is part of the Alça Viária complex, a series of highways (74km in total) and bridges (4.5km) in the region. Local media reported that a January inspection of the bridge found corrosion problems on the pillars.

Governo anunciou hoje (6), durante coletiva, as medidas emergenciais para minimizar os impactos sofridos pela população após o acidente na ponte Rio Moju, a terceira da Alça Viária, que foi atingida por uma balsa nessa madrugada | Mais informações: https://t.co/R5GOKyLeEi pic.twitter.com/Hm6pJQcKLx

— Governo do Pará (@GovernoPara) April 7, 2019

The bridge is 48 km away from Belém where three major grain traders operate – Archer Daniels Midland Co, Bunge Ltd, and Hidrovias do Brasil SA. According to Vila do Conde port, road traffic to the port could be affected. However Reuters reported that Hidrovias does not use Moju River to move cargo, nor does its grain trucks usually take the bridge where the incident happened. Hidrovias has the highest loading and transportation capacity in Northern Brazil, according to the company’s website. Barge traffic on the Tocantins and Amazon rivers, which use the Northern river ports including Vila do Conde and Barcarena to move cargo, is unlikely to be affected by the collapse.

Brazil’s National Transport Infrastructure Department (DNIT) is assisting the state government with the situation. The state government said it would install ramps and have barges ferry cars from one end of the broken bridge to the other while the section is rebuilt. According to Reuters, about 5.7m tons of soybeans and 3m tons of corn were unloaded in the region last year.

Olá, pessoal. Iniciando mais uma semana e nesse momento estamos reunindo com o presidente do TCE, discutindo soluções que possam contribuir para minimizar os transtornos do acidente na ponte de Moju. pic.twitter.com/PReCa1KzyY

— Helder Barbalho (@helderbarbalho) April 8, 2019

Sharing is caring!