Whose fault in bridge collapse?

A section of a US highway bridge in Minneapolis plunged into the Mississippi River during last Wednesday evening's rush hour in a deadly avalanche of steel and concrete, flipping dozens of vehicles into the river or onto the debris. Up to August 2, four had been confirmed dead, more than 70 injured and 30 missing. The catastrophic accident sent a huge shocking wave across the American society.

President Bush called an emergency meeting of ministers. He seemed to be in a rush and muddle, ordering the transportation secretary and federal highway director to the spot in rescue and also dispatching the first lady there to comfort families of victims and the injured. At the meeting he also decided to allocate a fund of five million U.S. dollars in immediate response to the incident.

It is necessary to build a new bridge, some Americans believe, but more important is to avoid repetition of the tragedy. Collapse of this 40-year-old bridge is by no means accidental, but due to "structural deficiencies" experts diagnosed years before. The state government submitted as early as in 2001 a "check-up" report of the bridge to the Department of Transportation, and the latter confirmed three years later "structural deficiencies". In spite of that, no substantial amends were made by related authorities.

There are reportedly 750 bridges across America using the same design. That is, they all bear "structural deficiencies". This constitutes a severe threat to life and property of the public. Some American blog writers accused the government of splashing on war but holding money back on road construction. Others pointed out that the government must take precautions by checking and repairing roads and bridges regularly, instead of being awakened when a disaster strikes.
-By People's Daily Online