Kassana-Tumu bridge washed away by heavy downpour again 

A recent heavy downpour, has washed away the Piiriguba Bridge, popularly known as the Rock Bridge, on the Kassana-Tumu road, causing it to collapse and rendering the route unmotorable for commuters. 

This marks the third consecutive year that rains have destroyed the bridge, cutting off several communities from accessing Tumu, the district capital of the Sissala East Municipality, for their daily activities. 

During a visit to the area by Mr Adamu Yakubu, the Sissala East Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), the residents lamented the negative impact of the collapsed bridge on their livelihoods and appealed for a permanent solution. 

Mr Dramani Iddrisu, the Assembly Member for the Tengvielli-Kassana Electoral Area, emphasized the vital role of the road, which connects Kassana to Beiga and serves as a key route for farmers and residents in the area. 

“Our headache is that this road links Kassana to Beiga, and most farmers rely on it to transport inputs like fertiliser. Fertiliser application is ongoing, and the current state of the road is a major challenge. We urgently need an emergency solution to make it motorable again,” Mr Iddrisu lamented. 

Alhaji Braimah Maliki, Chief of Kassana, appealed to the government and the Sissala East Municipal Assembly to urgently fix the road to relieve residents of their current plight. 

He said, “If nothing is done quickly, access to healthcare, markets, and farming inputs will be severely disrupted, worsening the economic situation for our people.” 

Mr Iddrisu Bachana, a community elder, described the current destruction as unprecedented and urged the government to expedite the construction of the road. 

Mr Abdul-Latif Adam, Head of Works at the Sissala East Municipal Assembly, said the road was almost completely cut off, adding that if there was another heavy rain, even pedestrians would struggle to use it. 

“The entire stretch near the culvert is dangerously eroded. We are considering filling the area with gravel and creating open ditches to channel the water and help restore access to the washed-away road,” he said. 

The MCE described the situation as “devastating,” adding that “this is an area where farmers get their livelihood, and we are in the middle of the fertiliser application season. The timing of this destruction couldn’t be worse.” 

He promised swift action to fix the road and said he had instructed the Works Engineer to deploy the DRIP machines as soon as possible as an interim measure to restore temporary access while work on a permanent solution continued. 

Mr Yakubu noted that aside from the Kassana-Tumu road, other roads such as the Nabugubelle-Dolunbizon, Kwapun-Wuru, Sakalu-Jijen, Jaliboi-Sakalu, Gwosi-Santijan, and Bawiesebelle-Duu roads have all been affected by the rains. 

He called on the central government to assist the Sissala East Municipal Assembly in repairing the damaged roads to relieve residents of the burden they are currently facing. 

Source: GNA 

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