AN unidentified person allegedly attempted to steal the steel lid cover from a section of the first Mandaue-Mactan bridge which was undergoing repairs on Wednesday morning, Sept. 27, 2023, causing a nearly two-hour delay for motorists crossing the bridge.
According to Edwin Jumao-as, head of the Traffic Enforcement Agency of Mandaue (Team), the thief attempted to lift and carry the steel top cover at the entrance of the bridge on the Mandaue side, leaving it partially open, which resulted in the heavy traffic on Wednesday morning.
The gridlock began at 6:30 a.m. and lasted until 8 a.m. when the Team and Lapu-Lapu City’s Traffic Management System (TMS) personnel staff placed the steel lid back in its place.
Roderick Daño, who heads the TMS Overall Sector, said the recent downpours might have prevented the lid from being successfully welded.
He said they already contacted the repair company and asked it to have its workers reattach the steel to the road.
Daño said the steel lid cover was about 3/4 of an inch deep and weighed around a ton.
Jumao-as said the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) 7 and a private contractor have been performing maintenance and repairs on the affected section from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. daily.
Authorities are currently looking into the incident and are trying to identify the man who attempted to steal the lid cover.