Yalu River Broken Bridge 鸭绿江断桥 | |
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Coordinates | 40°06′54″N 124°23′29″E / 40.1149°N 124.3915°E |
Crosses | Yalu River |
Locale | Dandong, Liaoning, China |
Characteristics | |
Material | Steel |
Total length | Originally 944.2 m (3,098 ft) |
Width | 11 m (36 ft) |
History | |
Opened | October 1911 |
Closed | 1950–1951 |
Location | |
The Yalu River Broken Bridge (simplified Chinese: 鸭绿江断桥; traditional Chinese: 鴨綠江斷橋; pinyin: Yālù Jiāng Duàn Qiáo) is a truncated railway swing bridge converted to a viewing platform and historical site. Constructed in 1911 by the Empire of Japan, it was the first bridge built across the Yalu River and connected the Chinese city of Dandong with the Korean city of Sinuiju, linking Japanese-ruled Korea to the Eurasian rail network. The bridge originally consisted of twelve truss spans supported by stone foundations in the riverbed. During the Korean War, the eight spans over the Korean side of the river were badly damaged by American bombing, and were subsequently dismantled. The bridge was not rebuilt. Instead, the remaining four spans over the Chinese side of the river were converted to a walkway, a viewing platform, and a historical site.