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Myanmar’s military junta has accused anti-coup forces of bombing and destroying the historic Gokteik Viaduct, a colonial-era railway bridge once hailed as the tallest of its kind in the world. The incident, confirmed on Sunday (24 Aug), marks a symbolic and strategic blow in the country’s deepening civil war.

 

The Gokteik bridge, built in 1901 during British rule, spans a dramatic gorge in northern Shan State and rises 102 metres above the valley floor. It has long served as a vital rail link between Mandalay and the north, as well as a draw for tourists seeking panoramic views of Myanmar’s rugged interior.

 

Junta spokesman Zaw Min Tun claimed in a video statement that the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and allied People’s Defence Forces were responsible for the attack, stating the bridge had been “exploded with mines.” Social media footage appears to show partial collapse and structural damage.

 

However, the TNLA has denied involvement, asserting that the bridge was struck by junta drones targeting rebel positions nearby. “They bombed our troops, but their bomb also hit Gokteik bridge,” said TNLA spokesperson Lway Yay Oo.

 

The surrounding region, including the towns of Nawnghkio and Kyaukme, has witnessed intense fighting in recent weeks. The junta claims to have retaken Nawnghkio in July, though resistance groups continue to contest control.

 

The destruction of the Gokteik Viaduct is more than a tactical setback—it’s a cultural loss. Once a marvel of engineering, the bridge stood as a testament to Myanmar’s layered history and its fragile infrastructure. Its collapse underscores the widening toll of a conflict that has raged since the 2021 military coup, displacing thousands and fracturing the nation.

 

As both sides trade blame, the fate of Myanmar’s landmarks—and its people—hangs in the balance.

 

-2025-08-25

Here is some historical wrap-up on this magnificent symbol of engineering dedication, professionalism and what the British empire had achieved in the (distant) past. The Indian government (the British rules Burma and Malaya out of India back in the day) ordered the construction and the Americans wanted to put their foot into the dealings of the British empire which resulted in undercutting the British competition in price and construction time. 

Here some notes from back in my days 😉 

 

The Gokteik Viaduct (GPS: 22.342270 96.859231)

 

This magnificent structure, with its almost 700 meters long and over 100 meters high, is still considered a world-class masterpiece due to its technical and natural characteristics.

 

The British planning and construction management was carried out under the baton of Sir Arthur Rendel of the “Burma Railroad Company”. The physical construction however was carried out by the “Pennsylvania and Maryland Bridge Construction Company,” based in Steelton, USA. The latter secured the contract thanks to an undercut price and a third of the construction time; the Americans' award was due to British conservatism and the trade union nuisance back then already. Mr. John C. Turk was the American Chief Engineer in residence on site and it is also thanks to him, that we have plenty of photographic proof of the construction development.

 

This fantastic structure over the Chungzoune River in the Gokteik Gorge allowed for the extension of the previously built Rangoon-Mandalay railway line all the way to Lashio.

 

This feat of American engineering consists of a total of 232,868 parts (not including the rivets), was assembled into 15 towers with a span of 24 meters each, 10 tension elements of 37 meters each, and 18-meter-long girders. To position the tangential viaduct in the very rugged terrain, the British designed two corresponding curved bridgeheads of 88 and 107 meters respectively and bored two tunnels on the north side to accommodate the 251-meter radius and a slight gradient between the two bridgeheads. The construction timeframe was met in 16 months; but how they managed to haul all that steel, weighing 4,332 tons, through the jungle about 100 kilometers northeast of Mandalay will probably remain a mystery forever.

 

The start of construction did not bode well, with torrential monsoon rains and a 450-millimeter typhoon in October 1899, which temporarily made transport from Mandalay to the construction site impossible.

 

The assembly was supervised by 35 Americans under the direction of 12 British experts; the army of illiterate Burmese worked according to different color codes, which had already been marked at the factory. Of the total 994,612 rivets, only 232,868 had to be countersunk on site; factory bar codes enabled the rivets to be inserted into their corresponding holes. The last rivet was sunk by Sir Frederic Fryer, Lieutenant-Governor of Burma, on November 1, 1900 – mission accomplished - the viaduct was complete!

 

With the Crown's financial outlay of UKP 112,200 at the time (UKP 18 million today), exports from southwest China were no longer an issue – the line (including the Gokteik Viaduct) was handed over to the Burma Railway Company on schedule on June 1, 1901.

 

Fortunately, the Burmese have done nothing for 122 years except refresh the paint every few years – and that's a good thing.

 

I first crossed this viaduct in 1977; at the time, it was extremely laborious and bureaucratic, requiring a Burmese to vouch for me – just in case I were to sabotage this then (and still today) strategically important connection between Mandalay and Lashio. I corruptly bribed my first "witness" with a few kyat (local currency)!

 

In December 2017, for what could have been my 40th visit to Burma/Myanmar, a few friends and we (two cars and three large motorcycles) wanted to visit "my" favorite viaduct. The only road up to the plateau was blocked by a third-party accident for just long enough that we missed the departure of the northbound train (131up) from Gokteik (GPS: 22.337906 96.855664). We then raced through the Gokteik Valley to catch the southbound train (132down) from Naung Peng (GPS: 22.351174, 96.914135). The train could only cross the viaduct after the northbound train (131) had arrived in Naung Peng. Of course, that also failed by minutes; everyone sat around disappointed. Thanks to a greenback showing 100 USD, I was able to convince the stationmaster to start the diesel railcar. So much for a unique private passage across this legendary viaduct – with a stop right on top of this relic of the British Empire. Here's the post from a fellow passenger at the time: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGEifFB6IwU 

 

I myself posted the following two videos on YouTube; the first 20 seconds are (unfortunately) blurry, but they might still give an impression of British precision work.

131up: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jW6hI0Wg2Dw 

132down: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLauO7nPNKE 

 

Even Paul Theroux, in his worthwhile work “The Great Railway Bazaar - by train through Asia,” immortalized the Gokteik Viaduct as an “absolute monster of silver geometry in all the ragged rock and jungle, its presence was bizarre.”

 

Quite sad. I took the Mandalay-Pin Ou Lwin (I think) trip in 2002. It was magnificent. The army threatened people for looking out the windows or opened doors.  I really wanted to take the trip again.