Major mishap averted as beam falls during Aroor-Thuravoor elevated highway construction

A massive iron beam installed as part of the Aroor–Thuravoor elevated highway construction fell to the ground at Thuravoor Junction while being dismantled on Sunday morning (August 17, 2025). No one was injured in the incident, which occurred around 6 a.m.

The fallen beam, about 24 m long and weighing nearly 50 tonnes, had been placed on top of a pier cap of the elevated highway to secure the girders. As the girders had already been concreted and fixed, the beam was being removed with the help of a crane when the rope snapped, causing it to fall. It landed partly on the lorry that was brought to transport it and partly on the road. Traffic had been blocked during the dismantling, which helped avert a major tragedy.

Another crane was later brought in to lift and remove the beam. The incident caused traffic disruption on National Highway (NH) 66 for nearly two hours.

In March this year, four girders of an under-construction flyover of the Alappuzha bypass road, as part of the widening of the NH 66, collapsed.