in

Stunning moment local pol escapes deadly bridge collapse — as he films video warning how dangerous causeway should be fixed

stunning-moment-local-pol-escapes-deadly-bridge-collapse-—-as-he-films-video-warning-how-dangerous-causeway-should-be-fixed
Stunning moment local pol escapes deadly bridge collapse — as he films video warning how dangerous causeway should be fixed

A Brazilian politician filming a video about the dangerous disrepair at a local bridge narrowly escaped as the bridge collapsed and plunged into the river right before his eyes — and managed to capture the moment on video.

At least one person died in the collapse and 15 others are still missing.

Elias Júnior, a councilman for the city of Aguiarnópolis in northern Brazil, had been recording a video about the sorry state of a roadway bridge on Sunday afternoon when the asphalt began to buckle and crack behind him.

A large section of the bridge suddenly gave way, sending the official and his cameraman fleeing for their lives, the video shows.

After sprinting clear of the bridge, the pair kept rolling and walked back to the scene to discover that nearly the entire structure had gone down — taking at least eight vehicles with it.

Local Brazilian official Elias Júnior was filming a video on a bridge when it went down.

Local Brazilian official Elias Júnior was filming a video on a bridge near the city of Aguiarnópolis when it went down. Instagram / Elias Junior

Júnior's cameraman captured the roadway falling away before both men fled.

Júnior’s cameraman captured the roadway falling away before both men fled. Instagram / Elias Junior

The bridge had connected the states of Tocantins and Maranhão.

The bridge had connected the states of Tocantins and Maranhão. Instagram / Elias Junior

Brazilian Minister of Transport Renan Filho has declared a state of emergency as rescuers scramble to rescue survivors from the collapse, Brazilian news outlet Globo reported.

But rescue efforts stalled when authorities learned that a chemical truck spilled a full tank of sulfuric acid into the water when it went down.

At least one person died in the collapse and 15 more are missing.

At least one person died in the collapse and 15 more are missing. Instagram / Elias Junior

“We need to know the quality of the water so that we can deploy our diving teams, which are already here,” Col. Magnum Coelho, a colonel for the fire department, told reporters in Portuguese.

“Many people were talking about the cracks in [the bridge]. I came to show it, but I didn’t imagine that at that moment of filming the bridge would collapse,” Councilman Júnior told Globo in Portuguese.

“I’m still in shock, in disbelief. … We left in despair with our hands on our heads,” he recalled.

jilted-jeffries-says-no-more-bailouts-for-speaker-johnson-if-gop-revolts

Jilted Jeffries says no more bailouts for Speaker Johnson if GOP revolts

full-extent-of-tank-dell’s-devastating-knee-injury-revealed

Full extent of Tank Dell’s devastating knee injury revealed