Hundreds of passengers were stranded in Taraba State after a temporary bridge at Namnai collapsed following heavy rainfall on Wednesday night. The makeshift structure, built by a private individual along the Jalingo-Wukari trunk A Federal Highway, was swept away as River Namnai overflowed. The original bridge had collapsed two years ago and has not been replaced, forcing reliance on the informal crossing. According to Daily Trust, the temporary bridge had become a vital route for motorists, with the builder charging between N3,000 and N20,000 per vehicle. Hundreds of vehicles, including commercial trucks, used the passage daily. After the collapse, rising water levels made the river crossing impossible for vehicles. Drivers like Musa Adamu reported that hundreds of vehicles were left parked on both banks, with passengers forced to cross on foot and board new vehicles on the other side. The North East Development Commission had awarded a contract for the permanent bridge's reconstruction three months ago, with assurances it would be completed by December. However, site observations show slow progress on the project.
The collapse of the makeshift Namnai Bridge exposes the dangerous gaps left by delayed federal infrastructure projects. When citizens resort to paying a private operator up to N20,000 per vehicle just to cross a river, it shows how deeply dysfunction has taken root. In Nigeria, where Nollywood plots often mirror reality, this scene feels less like news and more like a script from a thriller about state neglect. The promise of completion by December means little without visible, urgent work on the ground.
