Daily Times

Amidst flash flood criticality spelling disaster in many parts of Gwadar, three bridges of Eastbay Expressway, one of CPEC’s modern roads, have saved the eastern part of the coastal city from sheer sinking. According to a Gwadar Pro’ report on Friday, they have prevented many casualties and destruction to residential and commercial infrastructure. At the stretch of the over 19-kilometre-long state-of-the-art Eastbay Expressway, the opening of the three bridges played a role of water outlets, allowing torrential rainwater to flow downward to sea.

Imam Buksh Bozenjo, who worked as a project director of Eastbay Expressway from the side of Gwadar Port Authority (GPA) told Gwadar Pro that if these three bridges (underpasses) were not assimilated into the final construction design of Eastbay Expressway in collaboration with Chinese engineers, the eastern part of Gwadar would be inundated completely, causing death toll, catastrophic destruction to homes and infrastructures. “With construction of Eastbay Expressway known as technology road, not only about 4 kilometers of the area is reclaimed from the sea through ‘Revetment and Piling Technology’ but also high-tech inventive for these bridges were specially built,” he added.

Besides their primary purpose to facilitate local fishermen to tow their boats to ashore for fishing allowing them to earn their livelihood, these bridges crafted another meaning to local people of Gwadar. Mohsin Baloch named them “bridge of lives” while talking to Gwadar Pro during a survey of the area. “We are saved and credit goes to China for furnishing the favor,” he added. These bridges are around 30 meters high and 45 meters wide. As per Gwadar topography, it has a sunken nature in the center that makes it very vulnerable for accumulation of water when it rains. Since the center of Gwadar is lower-lying than the surrounding areas, water does not naturally drift away from the area. Nevertheless, water keeps flowing inward and causes water collection.

At least three bridges of Eastbay expressway have fixed the issue in the eastern part of Gwadar that starts from Fish Harbor and ends at Coast Guard. If looked back in history, when rainy spells used to lash out at Gwadar, tide of sea used to inflict damage to boats and houses. Now with barrier board and 4.34km anti-wave breast wall to make the 4.34km revetment, the embankment is saved from onslaughts of sea waves.