Bristol floating harbour footbridge collapses during tests
A famous footbridge in Bristol's floating harbour collapsed during routine tests and has been closed to walkers.
How it was covered
- ITV was the only channel found covering it.
- Channel 5, BBC News, BBC One, BBC Two, Channel 4, GB News and Sky News: not found in tracked broadcasts.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story. Facts only one channel reported are attributed to it.
Bristol's Perrows Bridge, a well-known footbridge over the city's floating harbour, has been closed after it collapsed during routine tests on the morning of the incident. The bridge, which opened in 1999, now appears buckled and twisted, with one section no longer lining up with the other. The moment of collapse was captured on camera by a passerby, and witnesses reported an almighty bang and visible shaking of the structure.
At the time of the collapse, the bridge was undergoing a maintenance check, and no one was on it, so there were no injuries. The bridge connects Queen Square to Millennium Square, an area packed with bars and restaurants, and is used by thousands of people every day, especially at weekends. It is now closed to pedestrians, who face a five to ten minute detour around the city centre to cross the water. In addition, no boats are allowed to pass underneath the bridge because of the risk.
The local council has said it is urgently investigating what happened, but early indications suggest the repair work will be neither quick nor cheap. The bridge had been raised to about 45 degrees before it gave way, and it is now twisted almost on its side. The closure is expected to last for the foreseeable future.
Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, grouped by how many channels reported each one. Select a dot to see the source excerpt.
| Claim |  |
|---|---|
| Only on one channel | |
| A bridge collapsed during routine tests, with no injuries, and the structure is twisted and does not meet in the middle. | |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
ITV News West Country focused on the visual impact of the collapse, the disruption to pedestrians and river traffic, and the likely lengthy and costly repair. The report stressed that the bridge was empty during the test, so no one was hurt, but highlighted the inconvenience and the structural damage.
- “The famous Perrows Bridge on Bristol's Harbourside is closed tonight after it appeared to collapse during routine tests this morning.”
- “This was during a maintenance check, as you say, so no-one was on it at the time, thankfully, no injuries.”
- “People have told me there was an almighty bang, and the bridge visibly shook.”
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.