Posted by By Austin Ogwuda on
DELTA State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Udom Ekpoudom has ordered a 24-hour security beef-up at the Niger Bridge Head, Asaba, following the ongoing rehabilitation work on the bridge which kicked off last Friday. A visit to the Bridge Head, weekend, showed a heavy police presence.
Asaba - DELTA State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Udom Ekpoudom has ordered a 24-hour security beef-up at the Niger Bridge Head, Asaba, following the ongoing rehabilitation work on the bridge which kicked off last Friday.
A visit to the Bridge Head, weekend, showed a heavy police presence.
The Federal Government had recently alerted the general public that the bridge would be closed to traffic with effect from July 29 to September 30 this year between the hours of 11:00 pm to 4:00 am in the morning daily to enable repair work go on unhindered.
Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) of the Delta State Police Command, Miss Olabisi Okuwobi told Vanguard in Asaba yesterday that 'the Commissioner of Police actually lectured the DPO (Divisional Police Officer) in charge of Asaba Bridge Head and other DPOs within the Asaba metropolis to keep an eye there and be extra vigilant while the rehabilitation work lasts.
'You know it is a Federal Government project and we must ensure that we (police) protect government property as well as ensuring that the lives and property of people especially the travellers that might be trapped on the way during the hours of the closure. We are also there to protect the lives and property of the company carrying out the job," stated the PPRO.
Meanwhile, an Asaba-based expert in Structural Engineering, Professor Paul Okwuobi has commended the Federal Government for embarking on the rehabilitation, describing it as long overdue.
Okwuobi, a former Head of Department of Civil Engineering at the University of Benin (Uniben) who had consistently raised alarm over the imminent collapse of the age-long bridge said 'let me tell you that bridge is being overloaded.
"You can think about the traffic 40 years ago and the traffic now, the place is being overloaded now and this is the time for a second supporting bridge. People have complained about vibration on the bridge, yes, I won't be surprised because if you keep a standing load on the bridge for a long time, anything can happen so is not a good thing. Something has to be done," he stated.