India calls off search after fatal bridge collapse

MORBI - India's Gujarat state on Thursday (Nov 3) said that the search operation following the collapse of a bridge that led to the death of 135 people had been called off.

Local fire brigade, state and national disaster teams will be kept on standby, a government statement said.

The colonial-era suspension footbridge in Morbi town, over the Machchhu river, was packed with sightseers around the Diwali and Chhath Puja festivals when it gave way on Sunday evening, sending people plunging about 10 metres into the water.

"One person was reportedly missing since the incident, but we have a police report that says no such person is missing. All persons have been accounted for. And hence the decision to call off the search operation," GT Pandya, senior administrative official in Morbi told Reuters.

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