A significant traffic incident occurred in Nausori on August 20, 1984, causing a substantial disruption that lasted over five hours. The chaos was triggered when a bulldozer being transported on a Royal Fiji Military Forces army truck fell off the vehicle, blocking the old Rewa Bridge and impacting both road and air travel.
Witnesses reported that the incident happened shortly before 1 PM when the army truck attempted to navigate past a bottle collector’s truck on the narrow bridge. In an effort to allow the other vehicle through, the army truck veered left, which resulted in the bulldozer hitting a support on the bridge. This caused it to slide off and crash onto the truck beneath.
Fortunately, there were no injuries reported from the incident. However, the blockage left numerous vehicles stranded on both sides of the bridge, causing significant delays for commuters and local residents until around 6 PM that evening.
Mohammed Yunus, an employee with Western Wreckers, played an essential role in clearing the scene. He explained that it took his team four hours to restore normalcy to the bridge. They started the bulldozer to stabilize it, utilizing a fork attached to its rear as a jack to lift it and place timber supports underneath. They then used a tow truck to carefully remove the bottle collector’s vehicle.
The disruption also affected air travel, with Air Pacific having to delay five flights from Nausori Airport by about half an hour. Passengers and airport workers faced the challenge of walking to the airport amidst the traffic jam.
Yunus described the clearing process as meticulous, ensuring the safe return of the bulldozer to the army truck. The army vehicle was transporting the bulldozer from Kasavu, Nausori, to Nabua in Suva when the incident occurred.
Despite the inconveniences, the quick response from the rescue teams and workers helped restore order in the area by late evening.