All three loading bridges that have been in the Port of Bar since 1977 collapsed due to strong gusts of wind. The bridges were over 30 meters high and weighed more than 400 tons. It is not yet known how much damage will be done to the Port of Bar, but for a long time they will not be able to work as before.
Ilija Pješčić, director of AD Luka Bar, told "Vijesta" that. He added that there was no indication that there would be hurricane-force winds and that there were workers on the ground performing regular work.
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"Fortunately, no one died, but a couple of workers were injured. These were minor injuries, scratches and the like," said Pješćič and explained that most of them took shelter in time.
As he explained, transshipment bridge C, which was close to the coast, on which cable and grapple repairs were being carried out, was anchored and tied with chains to the anchors, the brakes and pedals were down.
However, the gusts of wind were so strong at one point that the anchors broke and he went uncontrollably, at high speed, towards two other bridges and pulled them behind him, since they are on rails.
"As they piled on top of each other, the wind dragged them until they fell completely. Just a difficult day for Luka," he said.
The financial damage caused by the loss of the bridges itself is not great, he explained, but the loss that the Port of Bar will suffer cannot be estimated because the goods they have been working with until now will be the most affected.
Pješčić said that they have two mobile cranes with which they will handle transshipment, but they will no longer have the efficiency they once had.
The bridges that were demolished are over 50 years old, but the workers regularly took care of them, he concluded.
Radulović: It's a great pity, the Government will stand behind Luka Bar
He met with the Minister of Transport and Maritime Affairs, Filip Radulović, who visited the Port of Bar and toured the accident site, and the President of the Board of Directors, Dušan Masoničić, also attended the meeting.
Radulović also told "Vijesta" that it is not yet known how much damage has been caused, not even roughly, but that they will try to determine it in the coming period.
"There was a situation where three transshipment bridges and one crane fell. I must say that the situation is bad, it will be a great pity. In the coming period, we will see exactly how much this figure will be," he said.
He said that they, as a responsible Government, will stand behind the Port of Bar and that there is a possibility in the State Aid Control Act to give a certain amount of money due to natural disasters. When it is established exactly how much damage there is, they will help this company financially.
The place of the accident is fenced off with police tape, and protection and rescue officers from the Bar Port are also on the ground. They still cordon off certain parts of the Free Zone due to potential danger.
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