Saturday October 22, 2022
Beledweyne (HOL) - Residents in the Bulaburte district of Hiiraan have begun repairing a strategic bridge destroyed by an Al Shabaab suicide bomb on Wednesday.
The bridge sustained heavy damage, with a gaping hole in the middle of the road, but it did not collapse.
Regional officials welcomed the independent initiative undertaken by Bulaburte's residents, who say they are keen not to disrupt the business activities that many of the locals heavily rely on.
Residents said that they want to at least temporarily repair it so that people and animals can cross the bridge safely. However, locals are calling on the government to step in and complete the full repairs so that vehicles and trucks can pass.
Government officials, including Ahmed Mahad Nur, the district commissioner of Bulobarde, have promised to rebuild the bridge.
Al Shabaab militants destroyed the Bulaburte bridge on Oct 19.
According to security officials, two men rode on a motorcycle onto the bridge before one of the men jumped off the bike before the suicide bomber detonated his explosive-laden motorcycle. Security forces shot and killed the surviving attacker, and troops seized two more motorcycles loaded with explosives.
Officials believe the suicide blast was part of a more significant coordinated attack on critical regional infrastructure. SNA forces managed to stop the second bomber before he reached a separate bridge in Jalalaqsi less than an hour after the attack in Bulobarde.