Horrific moment: 12 vehicles plunge into a river as a Vietnamese bridge collapses

There were horrific scenes in Vietnam this morning when a steel bridge collapsed and twelve vehicles plunged into the flooded Red River.

At least 13 people are missing in the tragic incident that occurred on the morning of September 9 in Phu Tho province, while three survivors were pulled from the water and taken to hospital.

Dashcam footage from a nearby motorist captured the horrific moment the structure beneath a truck collapsed into the river, sending the vehicle plunging headfirst into the depths.

The clip also shows a motorcyclist who narrowly escaped the same fate when his tires screeched to a halt just moments before the bridge gave way.

Another motorcyclist, 50-year-old Pham Truong Son, described the horrific experience of his fall into the river to VNExpress, saying he heard a loud noise just before the bridge collapsed beneath him.

At least 13 people are missing in the tragic incident that occurred on the morning of September 9 on the Red River in Phu Tho province.

“I felt like I had drowned to the bottom of the river,” he said, adding that he managed to stay afloat by clinging to a floating banana tree until rescuers arrived.

Rescue efforts are currently underway, with military teams conducting searches in the treacherous waters of the Red River, NeedToKnow reports.

However, the number of missing people remains unclear as it is not yet known how many people were in each of the ten cars, trucks and two motorcycles that plunged into the river when the bridge collapsed.

The Phong Chau Bridge, inaugurated in July 1995, was said to be in a dilapidated condition, but the exact cause of the collapse has not yet been confirmed.

It is believed that the 375-metre-long structure, which connects the districts of Lâm Thao and Tam Nông, gave way during the severe weather caused by Typhoon Yagi.

The typhoon, which has weakened to a tropical depression, continues to wreak havoc in Vietnam, bringing heavy rains, flooding and landslides that have killed at least 59 people, including 50 in recent floods, according to AP News.

Since making landfall on Saturday, the typhoon has already devastated large parts of Vietnam, leaving a trail of destruction that has brought businesses and factories to a standstill, especially in the central and northern regions.

Meanwhile, Spanish police confirmed that a British couple hiking in a gorge in Mallorca were swept away and killed by a flash flood.

The clip shows a motorcyclist who narrowly escaped the same fate when he screeched to a stop just moments before the bridge collapsed.

An aerial view of the partially collapsed Phong Chau Bridge into the Red River

The Phong Chau Bridge, inaugurated in July 1995, was said to be in a dilapidated condition, but the exact cause of the collapse has not yet been confirmed.

Rescue operations are underway, military teams are conducting searches in the treacherous waters of the Red River

The number of missing people is still unclear because it is not yet known how many people were in each of the ten cars, trucks and two motorcycles that fell into the river.

The body of Alexander Johnson was found on Friday morning in the Torrent de Pareis in the Tramuntana mountains in Sa Calobra on the Spanish island.

“Police have found the lifeless body of the young British man who disappeared last Tuesday while hiking with a group of friends and his partner in the Torrent de Pareis,” the Guardia Civil said in a statement.

A police helicopter today discovered the 32-year-old's body “half submerged in an area where branches and rocks had accumulated” and officers were dispatched to the scene to recover the body, police added.

This confirms previous reports that Mr Johnson and his girlfriend, Sarah Jane Thompson, 26, were swept away by a flash flood in the Torrent de Pareis.

It is feared that Mr Johnson was caught in the water while trying to rescue his partner, whose body was found in the flooded ravine on Wednesday morning.