The authorities in Matanzas have announced an urgent intervention on the Lacret Morlot bridge, popularly known as the Versailles bridge, after a serious structural deterioration was detected in one of its pedestrian access points.
According to the report from the state-run newspaper Girón, the eastern path, closest to the bay, shows visible damage that compromises its stability, which will necessitate closing the pedestrian passage starting next week, tentatively from Wednesday, to begin immediate repairs.
Guillermo López-Calleja Pérez, project director of EMPAI Matanzas, stated that during this first phase, vehicular traffic will not be interrupted, although he noted that a deeper evaluation of the entire structure will be necessary.
To achieve this, a process of sandblasting will be applied, using high-pressure sand jetting, which will allow for the removal of oxides and an assessment of the actual condition of the bridge, in order to determine the scope of a potential comprehensive restoration.
The deterioration that now necessitates this intervention is not a sudden occurrence, but rather the result of years of neglect and lack of maintenance, exacerbated by salt corrosion and structural overload.
Gladys Socorro Prieto, director of projects at the DIP, acknowledged this, explaining that the bridge has endured an increasing flow of heavy trucks since the suspension of the railway line that crosses the Giratorio and Dubrocq bridges, located next to the "de Versalles."
Originally designed in the colonial era for carriages and carts, the Lacret Morlot, despite having been reinforced, was not built to withstand the weight and frequency of modern traffic, which includes trailers and cargo trucks.
Without an adequate conservation program, the century-old structure has reached a critical point that now requires emergency actions.
The bridge not only represents a historical heritage but also serves as the only road link between the Versalles neighborhood and the rest of the city of Matanzas.
If it were to be completely out of service, the city would be literally split in two, affecting mobility, access to basic services, and the commercial logistics of the port area.
Although authorities assure that it is an "urgent but controlled" repair, the situation highlights the accumulated deterioration of a vital infrastructure that has been ignored for years.
The extent of the damage and the decisions made in the coming weeks will be crucial to avoiding a possible complete shutdown, with severe consequences for thousands of residents of Matanzas.
At the beginning of the month, the government also announced the start of repairs on the Matanzas Rotary Railway Bridge, a century-old structure built in 1904 that, after years of neglect, shows significant corrosion damage in key elements of its framework, as confirmed on social media by the Minister of Transport, Eduardo Rodríguez Dávila.
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