“Birchenough Bridge” Crack Photo Sparks Fear, But Transport Ministry Says Bridge In Picture Isn’t Even In Zimbabwe

The Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development has dismissed as false a photograph circulating on social media purporting to show a crack on Birchenough Bridge over the Save River.

In a statement issued on 14 August 2026, the Ministry said it was aware of the image showing a crack at a steel bridge connection, which some members of the public had described as being Birchenough Bridge.

The Ministry said the structure shown in the photograph is not Birchenough Bridge.

“The Ministry wishes to reassure the travelling public that the structure shown in the image is not Birchenough Bridge,” reads the statement.

According to the Ministry, the differences are based on three key features.

Firstly, on the bridge type and load-carrying system, the Ministry said Birchenough Bridge is a steel arch suspension bridge with a very specific load arrangement.

“Birchenough Bridge is a steel arch suspension bridge, and it carries its loads through a very specific arrangement,” the Ministry said.

“The road surface is carried on longitudinal steel members known as stringers.

“These stringers are in turn supported by transverse cross beams (cross girders) that run across the width of the deck.

“The cross beams are suspended at each end by vertical hangers, and the hangers are themselves supported from the steel arches that span the river.

“In this way the full weight of the deck, and of the traffic upon it, is transferred upward through the stringers, then the cross beams, then the hangers, and finally into the arches, which carry the load down to the abutments on either bank — with no piers or supports standing in the river beneath.

“The structure in the photograph works on an entirely different principle: it is a riveted steel truss (lattice) bridge, in which loads are carried through a framework of steel members joined by riveted gusset plates, and not through an arch-and-hanger system at all.”

Secondly, on the arrangement of the steelwork, the Ministry said the connection in the circulating image is formed by steel members joined together with riveted gusset plates, which is not how the steelwork of Birchenough Bridge is arranged.

“The arrangement of the steel members shown in the photograph is different from that of Birchenough Bridge,” reads the statement.

“The connection in the image is formed by steel members joined together with riveted gusset plates, which is not how the steelwork of Birchenough Bridge is arranged.”

Thirdly, on the footwalk, the Ministry said Birchenough Bridge has pedestrian footways formed on either side of the carriageway, fabricated from a special rust-resisting steel selected for its durability.

It added that the walkway and steelwork configuration visible in the circulating image do not correspond to the footwalks of Birchenough Bridge.

The Ministry said it maintains a dedicated technical team that carries out regular inspections of Birchenough Bridge to confirm that the structure remains sound and continues to safely carry traffic within its established load limits and operating restrictions.

“These inspections form part of the Ministry’s routine bridge-management programme, and any maintenance found to be necessary is attended to accordingly,” the Ministry said.

“The safety of road users is the Ministry’s foremost priority. The Ministry wishes to assure the public that Birchenough Bridge remains fit for use under its current controls, and that its condition is kept under continuous professional oversight.

“Members of the public are therefore urged to disregard the suggestion that the circulating image depicts Birchenough Bridge, and to rely on official communications from the Ministry for accurate information on the condition of the country’s bridges.”