Authorities in Tocantins and Maranhão have issued a warning to the population to avoid consumption, use and bathing in the waters of the Tocantins River, in the region where the bridge fell Juscelino Kubitschek de Oliveira, which connects the two states. Yesterday (22), the central span of the bridge, 533 meters long, gave way, collapsing at least 10 vehicles, including four trucks, three passenger vehicles and three motorcycles.
The alert was launched after confirming the presence of cargo containing dangerous substances, including agricultural pesticides and corrosive chemicals, such as sulfuric acid.
According to the state secretariats for the Environment and Water Resources (Semarh) and the State Civil Defense of Tocantins, the State Secretariat for the Environment of Maranhão (Sema) and Estreito City Hall, the alert is due to the “high risk to health public and the environment due to the possible drop of loads with chemical products”.
The recommendation is that residents of the affected municipalities avoid any direct contact with water from the Tocantins River in the section affected by the accident, including bathing and drinking water.
The guidance is aimed especially at the populations of Aguiarnópolis, Maurilândia do Tocantins, Tocantinópolis, São Miguel do Tocantins, Praia Norte, Carrasco Bonito, Sampaio, Itaguatins, São Sebastião do Tocantins and Esperantina, in Tocantins.
In Maranhão, the alert applies to the cities of Estreito, Porto Franco, Campestre, Ribamar Ficane, Governador Edison Lobão, Imperatriz, Cidelândia, Vila Nova dos Martírios and São Pedro da Água Branca.
“Technical teams from both states, in partnership with other competent bodies, are mobilized to monitor the situation. The work includes assessing water quality and possible environmental impacts, planning and executing actions to contain river contamination and operations to remove submerged vehicles”, informed the government of Tocantins.
The situation caused the Maranhão Environmental Sanitation Company (Caema) to order the temporary shutdown of the water collection, treatment and production systems in Imperatriz, just over 120 km from Estreito.
The company asked the population to save water until the situation is normalized. According to the government of Maranhão, Caema will send water trucks to the affected locations, which will provide water in public places, such as: health units and police stations.
The possible contamination was also responsible for the suspension of searches for the missing. According to Estreito Civil Defense, so far 16 people are missing. One died and one remains hospitalized.
Agents from the Brazilian Institute for the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (Ibama) and the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio) are in the region to check the water quality situation and also impacts on local flora and fauna, for example of possible fish contamination.
Reconstruction
After flying over the area of the accident, the Minister of Transport, Renan Filho, said that an emergency situation had been declared in the region and that the federal government would allocate more than R$100 million for the work to restore the bridge and remove the debris.
Teams from the National Department of Transport Infrastructure (DNIT) are evaluating the situation, investigating the possible causes and “taking the necessary measures”, informed the minister.
“We have all the technical conditions for reconstruction and the necessary technical resources for reconstruction so that this work can be carried out in terms of not only reconstruction, but also the removal of rubble, assessment of damage caused, monitoring of the work and execution of future works. We will rebuild a bridge with all safety guarantee items”, he stated.
According to the minister, the department is working to have the resources released this year. “With the emergency declared, we want to contract the reconstruction of the bridge within the 2024 financial year. This will be a very resolute task for the ministry”, he added.
