Many traders, commuters and residents of Kongo and surrounding communities in the Tempane District have been stranded after a major bridge linking the area to the district capital collapsed following a heavy downpour early hour of Friday, July 10, 2026.
The collapse of the bridge, the only dependable access route connecting Kongo, neighbouring communities and parts of neighbouring Togo to Tempane and other parts of the district, has brought transportation, trading activities and access to essential services to a standstill.
Residents say the incident had effectively isolated the communities as floodwaters had also rendered all alternative routes impassable.
Mr Aminu Wahabu, a resident, described the situation as devastating, explaining that the bridge served as the main commercial corridor for the area.
“This is where all our communities pass. We use it as our commercial route, and now that it has collapsed, everything in this community has also broken down. It means people from Tempane can no longer pass through here as they used to, especially on market days,” he said.
He noted that traders were unable to transport farm produce and other goods to markets, while residents could neither travel to the district capital nor receive visitors, worsening the hardship in the area.
Mr Wahabu further disclosed that a relative who was being referred to a health facility on Friday morning could not be transported across the collapsed bridge and later died after the family was forced to return home.
Mr Fatawu Moni Yakubu, the Assembly Member for the Kongo Electoral Area, confirmed the incident and said the deceased was being prepared for burial.
“Maybe if the bridge had not collapsed, we could have rushed him to the hospital and he would have been alive by now. But we take consolation in the fact that God gives and takes,” he said.
Mr Yakubu explained that although there were alternative routes, they all crossed rivers that had overflowed following the rains, making them inaccessible.
“As of now, we are just blocked. There is no route for us to use,” he stressed.
He appealed to the government to intervene as a matter of urgency to restore access to the affected communities and ease the suffering of residents.
The bridge collapsed barely three weeks after concerns were raised over its deteriorating condition during a visit by Mr Joseph Mbilla Ayaaba, the Tempane District Chief Executive (DCE).
Although temporary repair works were undertaken after the visit to keep the bridge motorable, the latest rains washed away the weakened structure.
Mr Mbilla acknowledged the severity of the situation, saying the collapse had completely cut off Kongo and surrounding communities from the rest of the district.
He explained that the bridge had been in a weakened state for about four years and that the district assembly had recently undertaken emergency gravelling works to keep it passable during the rainy season.
“We moved our people and assembly equipment to the site and did gravelling, expecting that it would take us through the rainy season. Unfortunately, the heavy rains last night brought about the total collapse of the bridge, cutting the people of Kongo away. They can’t come to the district again,” he said.
He said engineers had already inspected the site and were working on measures to restore temporary access while arrangements were made for a permanent solution, adding that the reconstructing the bridge was beyond the financial capacity of the district assembly and disclosed that the matter had been reported to higher authority.
