Police raid Seongnam City Hall, Bundang District Office over fatal walkway collapse

Police and National Forensic Service investigators conduct a site inspection of the collapsed walkway of Jeongja Bridge in Seongnam's Bundang District on Friday. [YONHAP]

Police on Friday afternoon raided Seongnam City Hall and Bundang District Office over the collapse of a walkway attached to the Jeongja Bridge.

Investigators from the Gyeonggi Nambu Police Precinct searched both local government offices, as well as the offices of five different companies responsible for bridge maintenance, beginning at 1:30 p.m.

The walkway, which stretches along the side of the 108-meter-long bridge, collapsed at around 9:45 a.m. on Wednesday.

A 40-year-old woman and 27-year-old man who were on the walkway at the time of the accident fell 5 meters (16.4 feet) onto the pavement under the bridge that lines the Tancheon Stream, a popular spot for walks and outdoor activities.

The woman was pronounced dead after arriving at hospital, while the man sustained serious back injuries, authorities said.

Built in 1993, the bridge is frequently used by Bundang residents to reach nearby Jeongja Station on the Sinbundang and Suin-Bundang subway lines or to take express buses to nearby cities.

In last year’s safety inspection by the Seongnam municipal government, the 30-year-old bridge received a favorable rating with “no major defects,” but summary notes pointed out that repair work was needed for cracks.

Gyeonggi police investigating the collapse conducted a joint site inspection with officials from the National Forensic Service and the Korea Authority of Land and Infrastructure Safety on Friday to gather information.

An official at Bundang District Office in charge of overseeing the bridge was summoned Thursday for questioning, with officials from a company responsible for performing safety checks and repairs on the bridge also expected to be summoned shortly, police said.

The accident could be the first to fall under the Serious Accidents Punishment Act, which came into effect in 2021 and punishes central administrative agency chiefs and local government heads for hazards caused by defects in the design, production, installation or maintenance of public facilities.

BY MICHAEL LEE [lee.junhyuk@joongang.co.kr]