Two workers killed, six injured after bridge structure collapsed in central Japan

TOKYO, Japan - Two construction workers were killed and six others injured after an under-construction elevated expressway collapsed on Thursday in central Japan's Shizuoka city, reported Xinhua.

At 3:10am local time, the accident was reported to the police by a passerby who heard a crashing sound as a steel structure fell at a construction site in the Obane district of Shimizu Ward.

The two workers who were later confirmed dead were two men in their 50s, reported the Japan Times citing local police, adding that two other workers were seriously injured.

According to the police, the collapsed section of the expressway, a 65-metre steel frame weighing about 140 tonnes and forming the foundation of the elevated roadway, fell from a height of nine metres, police said.

About 30 workers were present at the time of the accident, shifting the frame to a different position, according to the Shizuoka National Highway Office.

An investigation is underway to determine the cause of the accident. - BERNAMA-XINHUA