The Russian Emergency Ministry has closed a seven-kilometer-long bridge which crosses the Volga River in Volgograd, after the structure started to wobble.
The bridge remained closed on Friday morning and emergency services stood by in the area in case the structure deteriorated further.
Strong currents in the river caused by the huge flow of extra water from melting snow upstream had apparently loosened one of the vertical supports, which affected the balance of the entire bridge.
The Emergency Ministry office in Volgograd held a meeting to decide if the bridge would be re-opened for use in the near future.
"There is confirmed information that the bridge is wobbling. At the moment all emergency forces are in place. The Volgograd Emergency Ministry is expected to hold an emergency meeting on the matter where they will take decision on whether or not the bridge can be used," said Volgograd Emergency Ministry official Vadim Basov.
The bridge, the longest in Europe, was completed last year and opened in October 2009. Its construction cost 80.36 million dollars.
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